Manhattan Short Film Festival

You Be the Judge!

Date
Wednesday, September 30, 2026
Event Starts
6:00 PM
Venue
Elm City's Cabaret at the Shubert Theatre
Location
247 College Street, New Haven, CT
Doors Open
Lobby doors open one hour prior to showtime, theatre doors open approx. 30 minutes prior to show. Latecomers may be asked to wait in the lobby until a time that will cause the least disturbance to the audience members already seated.
On Sale
On Sale Now
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Event Details

Discover your inner film critic by casting your vote for Best Film and Best Actor at the 29th Annual Manhattan Short Film Festival screening at the Shubert. You'll join film lovers simultaneously in over 500 venues across the globe gathering to see the Ten Finalist in this year's event. With past finalists garnering Oscar nominations and short films continuing to move into the Hollywood mainstream, come see this entertaining program featuring the best short films in the world today! Ballots supplied upon entry.

Introducing the MANHATTAN SHORT Finalists of 2026

For the first time in its history MANHATTAN SHORT has selected ten films from ten countries with films from USA, Ireland, Australia, South Africa, United Kingdom, Moldova, Russia, Cuba, Georgia and Mexico making up MANHATTAN SHORT 2026. “Since 9/11 my vision for this Festival has been to create a filmic Olympiad. An event consisting of ten quality shorts from ten separate countries that joins the world, and finally in 2026 we’ve managed to do that. I’m very excited for the reaction it receives from our worldwide audiences”, says Nicholas Mason, founding director of MANHATTAN SHORT Film Festival.

The MANHATTAN SHORT Final Ten are

Small Talk (USA)
Mary is Missing (Ireland)
Candy Bar (Australia)
Vultures (South Africa)
Life Goes On (United Kingdom)
Hai Davai (Moldova)
Pickup (Russia)
Norheimsund (Cuba)
When the Sea was Calm (Georgia)
Never Give Up (Mexico)

You Be the Judge!

Which of these Final Ten short films is the best? That's up to a worldwide audience to decide. Cinema-goers across the United States and around the globe will become instant film critics as they are handed a ballot upon entry that allows them to vote for the Best Film and Actor. MANHATTAN SHORT is the ultimate audience award that salutes the creative talents of both directors behind the camera and actors in front of it. Votes will be sent through to MANHATTAN SHORT HQ with the winners announced at ManhattanShort.com on Monday October 5, 2026 at 10 AM EST.