The 29th Festival de Málaga, organised by Malaga City Council through Malaga Procultura, has celebrated today at the Cine Albéniz the Ibershorts Award, a programme of Iberoamerican short films, in which five short films were selected: Domingo familiar (Family Sunday) by Gerardo del Razo; Sol menor (G Minor) by André Silva; Carlota by Cecilia Moreira; La asistente (The Assistant) by Pierre Llanos; and Como cantan las aves (Just as the Birds Sing) by Sara Martinez.

Carlota

The session began with Carlota by Cecilia Moreira,  representing the José Ignacio Festival in Uruguay. It tells the story of a Uruguayan boy who lives in a remote village and falls in love with a 19th century portrait of Carlota on a school trip to Montevideo. When he returns home, a village prostitute helps him to satisfy his desire.

Como cantan las aves

The session continued with the short film Como cantan las aves, by director Sara Martinez, which tells the story of a young man, Rafael, who during a hot holiday dreams of going with his cousins to the banana plantation. Although his grandmother forbids him to do so, one day, motivated by desire and curiosity, he decides to run away to be with them.

Martínez, representative of Hayah International Short Film Festival of Panama, commented: "There is something very genuine about this short film because it was made on a small budget and it was made with the hope that Panama is more than just the city”.

Domingo familiar

The director Gerardo Del Razo, representative of the Huesca Festival (Spain), has based this short film on one of the many peripheral areas of Mexico City, where local cartel hitmen routinely extort money from shopkeepers and residents. On a sunny Sunday when children are playing and neighbours are walking their dogs, in a housing unit located in one of these peripheral areas, a shopkeeper has not paid his dues and the hired assassins have come to give him an ultimatum.

La asistente

This is the story of Clara, a girl who works as her father's assistant in an informal dental practice. One lunchtime, a new patient arrives. Clara is in charge of the appointments, but this young woman takes her by surprise, as her father had never mentioned her to her before.

A short film by Pierre Llanos, representing Skyline Benidorm Film Festival (Spain), who commented that this short film was shot in Peru and deals with specific aspects of what it is like to be a child in this country.

Sol menor

The session ended with Sol menor by director André Silva representing the Festival Curtas Vila do Conde (Portugal), a short film that focuses on the beginning of spring, like a sonata, a letter, a bouquet of flowers. Samuel dedicates his days to his work as a flute teacher and to the rituals of mourning the early death of his wife Luisa, with whom he shared a life dedicated to music.