Portuguese Leonor Teles is the youngest director ever to win the Golden Bear for best short film at the Berlinale. A double achievement, since Batrachian’s Ballad is her first film outside film school. Batrachian’s Ballad charmed the Jury of the International Short Film Competition at the Berlinale, which awarded it the grand prize, and also the public – the ovations at the sold out theaters leave no room for doubt. A film produced by Uma pedra no sapato/Filipa Reis/João Miller Guerra. Distribution/Promotion: Portugal Film.
The genesis of Batrachian’s Ballad occurred when I learnt a surprising fact – the Portuguese tradition of placing ceramic frogs in the doorways of restaurants and other commercial premises to ward off gypsies. Through this personal tale of mine, I wanted to call attention to a growing tendency to use belief and superstition to deride other human beings and to keep them at bay.
Leonor Teles