Carla Simón wins the Golden Bear at the Berlinale

The international jury at the Berlinale has awarded its top prize, the Golden Bear, to the second feature film by filmmaker Carla Simón, five years after distinguishing her debut film Summer 1993 (Summer 1993 ") with the award for In her 72nd annual awards ceremony, the director said that the Berlinale, where "something special happens" every time she attends, is her home of cinema. "and that she is considered the daughter of this place."

"I can't believe it," Simon said just after taking the stage to pick up the award. The Catalan director wanted to dedicate the award to "the small families of farmers who cultivate the land every day so that the fruit reaches our dishes", an activity that she has considered "a form of resistance".

U.S. director M. Night Shaymalan, chairman of the jury, highlighted the film's "extraordinary performances," "from child actors to 80-year-old actors," and the film's ability to "show tenderness. and the family comedy and the portrayal of dependence on the land. "

In "Alcarràs", Simón paints a picture of the agricultural world in this town in Lleida, a landscape he knows well because part of his family is dedicated to agriculture. The film narrates the summer of a family dedicated to collecting peaches in a town in Lleida. It is the last harvest, because the owner of the land they have cultivated for decades will dedicate it to a more lucrative business: solar panels. "Alcarràs" conveys the nostalgia of a last summer, between boxes of peaches and jams. There are also some family quarrels and the rage of the farmer, who sees the basis of his existence being extinguished.