The jury of the short film festival awarded "That's How I Love You", by Mário Macedo the grand prize of its 32nd edition.
ADVERTISEMENTA collaboration between Portugal and Croatia earned Portuguese director Mário Macedo the main prize at this year's Curtas de Vila do Conde festival, which ended on Saturday.
"That's How I Love You" (in the original, "Tako te volim") was filmed in Croatia with an exclusively Croatian cast.
The 18-minute film tells the story of a child who learns a cruel lesson whilst on holiday at his grandparents' house in the countryside.
According to the jury, this was a film that was built on a subtle and intelligent approach to a child and his environment, building tension in a world where tenderness and cruelty can coexist.
"It allowed us time to understand growth and how love emanates," said the jury.
"It is a playful film that brought us joy and will remain with us and the audience with whom we shared the screening."
The award for Best Animated Short Film went to "Les animaux vont mieux" by Nathan Ghali (France); "Very Gentle Work" by Nate Lavey (USA) won Best Documentary; and "Pandarilo" by Marcela Heilbron (Panama) won Best Fiction.
In the National Short Film Competition, the main prize went to "Rinha", by Rita M. Pestana.
Created in 1993, Portugal's international short film festival, Curtas Vila do Conde, covers fiction, documentary, and animation categories in addition to experimental and music videos.
