February is one of the most difficult months to get through, particularly during a pandemic, so Tuesday’s announcement that the Manhattan Short Film Festival would go virtual this year on February 14-24 comes as welcome news.
The festival — whose theme is “One World - One Week - One Festival” — gots its start on September 27, 1988, when Nicholas Mason (not Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason) attached a screen to the side of a truck on Mulberry Street in New York, New York, and projected 16 short films to an audience of about 300 people scattered in the street. The next year, the screening moved to Union Square, with celebrity judges including Susan Sarandon, Eric Stoltz, Laura Linney, Roger Corman, and Tim Robbins choosing the finalists whose films would be shown. Today, the Manhattan Short Film Festival takes place in more than 500 screening rooms on six continents, with NHTI in Concord being one of the locations.
There are typically nine films selected from hundreds of entries originating all over the world. The attendees at each screening receive a voting card and a program so they can choose the one film and one actor they feel should be that year’s winner. Voting results are emailed to the festival’s New York headquarters to obtain a final world-wide tally.
This year’s regular festival will take place on September 23 - October 3, but festival organizers are offering a special Manhattan Short Online Festival on February 14-24. Households purchasing a $10 online ticket will be able to view a 90-minute collection of seven short films culled from 300 entries, and then vote online to choose their favorite film and actor.
Having attended several of the festivals in the past, I can attest that there is always a surprise and some outstanding work.
Pure Air
The Union Leader did an article on Paul Bemis of Bristol who designed “Clean Air Curtain” air purifiers that are in use in the Minot-Sleeper Library and at Plymouth General Dentistry. The devices utilize ultraviolet light and HEPA filters to purify the air, and Bemis told the newspaper that he’s working on a way to make them “smart” so they can indicate when an adjustment or repair is necessary.
His company, Air Cleaners, Inc., plans to lease the devices to companies with a service contract to replace filters and upgrade them as he improves the product.
So Is This An Editorial?
The News Café, as we explained when launching the newsletter a little over a month ago, is designed as a virtual meeting place, growing out of the idea for a sidewalk café outside the office of The Telegram in Franklin. We wanted to provide a place for people to read newspapers and then comment on what was of interest to them, or to suggest other topics that should be covered. It remained an idea without execution for more than two decades, until we settled on this approach.
It’s a little bit news, a little bit opinion, a little bit an experiment to bring people together to share ideas.
It’s also foreign territory. As a journalist involved in newspapers one way or another since high school, there was always a clear split: news coverage and commentary. We would criticize the media’s devolving into talk radio and entertainment TV where the line between news and opinion got blurred.
Now we’re doing something that may seem similar.
The difference is that the News Café is not about driving ratings to secure advertising dollars. We’re attempting to provide information that readers will find useful or interesting, and looking for them to let us know when there is something worth looking into in greater detail.
So, for instance, when we break down the tax impact of a decision to spend more on education, we’re putting the information out there, but are not taking a stand for or against the extra spending. That is up to the voters to decide. We’re just helping them to see both sides of the decision that awaits them.
We may offer personal opinions from time to time, such as praising a film festival or pointing out something we find humorous, but that’s just offering a perspective, not saying it’s a right or wrong opinion.
And we’re looking to hear from readers, too. Feel free to comment on the newsletter, or send in a commentary for publication.
And We Have One
The following is a letter submitted for publication:
This week a horrible thing happened to a friend of mine at Midstate Health Center in Bristol. She was bringing her child in for a doctor’s appointment and was denied treatment. She recently had been to Midstate for other treatment and Midstate knows she has Terminal Metastatic Cancer that makes it physically impossible to wear a face mask. Instead, she wears a face shield that has been acceptable in the past. This visit the nurse refused to come into the examine room until she put on a mask. Dr. Fagan of Midstate Health Center insisted they leave and refused the child to be examined by the pediatrician.
What have we become? Are we that insensitive to people that really need help? I can see if she was going to a movie, but a doctor’s visit is essential! Midstate Health Center and Dr. Fagan owe this person a HUGE apology. No one should be denied health care because of a disability.
Midstate Health Center must make their staff go through Bias and Sensitively Training.
This type of treatment must stop. We need to support places that respect people who do not wear a mask due to a medical condition. Midstate Health Center does not follow the Governor’s Mandate because the Mandate exempts people who have a medical condition from wearing a mask.
Stop judging people and start loving them. Let’s use some common sense and have more compassion.
John Sellers
Bristol
Mid-State Health has not responded to a request for comment.
The News Café is a virtual meeting place where we discuss the news of the day and where subscribers can share their knowledge, thoughts, and questions about any topic. We may even select some of those subjects for more in-depth analysis. So fill your cup with your favorite drink, pull up a chair, and join us at The News Café.
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