Ventura Water with partners Limoneira’s Limco Del Mar, Patagonia and iThentic announced today the top 10 water-focused films to be considered for the Water Take 1 online short film contest Grand Jury prize. Selected from among the 35 films entered, the finalists are: 
- A Salton Soul, directed by Mike Agnew, Greg Balkin and Tim Kressin
- Drop Drop, directed by Daniel Jonathan and Celeste Barbosa
- Ocean Friendly Gardens, directed by Rich Reid
- Storms End, directed by Aaron Schmidt
- The Forgotten Cycle, directed by Sahana Singh
- The Journey of Water, directed by Alex Uvari
- The Sea, directed by Caryn Sandoval
- Water, directed by Peter Jansen
- Water, directed by Ramesh S.
- We Are H2O, directed by Michael Carroll
The Grand Prize of $1,500 will be awarded to one of the finalists during a public ceremony hosted by Brooks Institute at their Ventura campus on November 8 at 6 pm; rsvp instructions to be announced at www.facebook.com/watertake1. The Best Student Short Film Award will also be announced and bestowed with a one-year subscription to Lynda.com, professional consulting services from Never Without a Picture and a $200 Patagonia gift card. Winners in both categories will be selected by a jury made up of environmental and entertainment professionals. The film receiving the most votes at watertake1.com by October 4 will be presented the Audience Choice Award winning a Canon EOX 7D Digital SLR camera.
“The Water Take 1 program is a creative way to draw attention to the serious issues of water shortages and aging infrastructure,” said Ventura Mayor Mike Tracy. Shana Epstein, General Manager of Ventura Water added that, “We are extremely pleased that the content of the many short films entered reinforces and embraces the value of water.”
In an effort to elevate the value of water, filmmakers from across the globe were invited to submit short films less than five minutes in any genre (drama, documentary, comedy, animation, Sci-fi or experimental) that address the topic of water at watertake1.com.To view the films to vote and share, visit watertake1.com by October 4. Viewers must watch the entire film before voting is enabled. Only one vote per computer will be counted but sharing across social media formats is open to promote the contest and all its films.
