Grace Etzkorn

After 20 years of praying for his daughter to let him back into her life, a 65-year-old Ty gets his wish when the prodigal requests his help in dealing with a financial bind and her rebellious teenage son. Ty's first encounter with his grandson, whom the grandfather has never met, leads to a challenge for a two mile race that alters the course of life of the young man as well as the grandfather.

An adult woman (the conductor) on the edge of failing and a pack of teenage girls (the choir) simultaneously experience a supernatural version of coming-of-age. The transformation is equal parts tense and tender. It unravels patiently to the infectious beat of an 80s era heavy metal anthem rearranged as a lamentation.

An evening in a suburban household reveals a familial fault line: a woman and her husband argue diffidently in the kitchen, and, tucked away in her bedroom, their teenage daughter and her friend get ready for a school dance. The two pairs revolve around each other, repeating the same words, though they are all stricken with the same inability to connect.

An edge-of-your-seat view into the lives of everyday heroes committed to one of America's noblest professions. For the firefighters, rescue squad and paramedics of Chicago Firehouse 51, no occupation is more stressful or dangerous, yet so rewarding and exhilarating. These courageous men and women are among the elite who forge headfirst into danger when everyone else is running the other way and whose actions make the difference between life and death.