(Photo by Shelby Herbert/KFSK)
Ten short films screened almost simultaneously in theaters all over the world this fall. It was all for the 27th annual Manhattan Short Film Festival, which invites viewers to vote for their favorite entries.
From one island that starts with an ‘M’ to another, and only a few thousand miles between them, the Manhattan Short Film Festival has been a fall staple on Mitkof for years.
Here’s how it works: movie theaters, universities, and libraries from all over the globe and in all fifty states get a DVD of all the festival entries, to be shown roughly within the same week.
It’s also a contest. And the winners aren’t picked by an academy or panel of judges — but the moviegoers, themselves. You get a little ballot with your ticket, and then you can vote on your favorite short film and performer on your way out.
All the way over on Mitkof Island, in the Alaska Panhandle, Petersburg is the only town in the state that participates — other than Anchorage.
But the venue here is a little different — the remote island community doesn’t have its own cinema. So, when locals “go to the movies,” they head to the auditorium of the combined middle and high school.
That’s where I found Petersburg Public Library employee Kari Petersen on the second night of the film festival, working the ticket booth. She coordinated the screening for the library.
As cash changed hands, she gives patrons a ballot that lists out everything they’re about to see.
Petersen hadn’t seen all ten short films yet, but she got a sneak peek at a few, and said the audience is in for an interesting night.
“It’s a mix of serious and humorous,” said Petersen. “It’s always a lot of fun. I always enjoy what I see!”
The lights start to dim as patrons settle into the folding metal chairs in the auditorium, in front of a portable projection screen.
The makeshift theater smells like popcorn — and the faint aroma of pencil shavings, spilled milk, and bleach that reminds you that you’re still in a public school.
A variety of shorts flicker across the screen. There’s one about a production assistant with delusions about being a famous actor; another about a robot with delusions about being human. It’s a little bit of everything, and in several different languages.
The lights go up for intermission, revealing a few misty eyes in the crowd — and some confused expressions. Sue Erickson has been coming to the festival for about five years. She said this year, there was a lot of really heavy, challenging material.
“I was happy though that it got lighter as we went along, because the first five were really heavy,” said Erickson. “But thought-provoking, for sure!”
Event organizer Kari Petersen said the comedies usually come out on top. She raved about one of the final films in the series — called, “The Jane Austen Period Drama.” Without spoiling too much, that title is a joke about menstruation.
“It is hilarious,” said Petersen. “I don’t know if it’s my favorite yet or not, but that one was pretty good. The serious ones are always a lot of fun, but the humorous ones are always so, so funny!”
Another crowd favorite was an Irish film called “Room Taken,” directed by TJ O’Grady-Peyton: a tenderhearted comedy about an unhoused man who sneaks into the home of a blind widow. He can’t thank her for the shelter without revealing himself, so he starts fixing things around her house. Then, the homeowner starts to believe she’s being haunted by her late husband, and… hilarity ensues.
Debra O’Gara said “Room Taken” had her vote. It was hardly even a question.
“It was about people’s relationships,” said O’Gara. “Being able to build relationships when there’s seemingly no commonality — but they made it work. It was going against all the stereotypes or the myths or the the expectations that society puts on two people who shouldn’t be getting along or having anything in common — but they do!”
As it turns out, many thousands of voters agreed with O’Gara. “Room Taken” took gold in this year’s contest. And that’s another well-attended Manhattan Short Film Festival in Petersburg’s books, with half the auditorium full, and half of the proceeds from the ticket sales going back to the public library.
As a note of disclosure, Kari Petersen is a volunteer at KFSK.
