Water Hazard
fiction short film
23 min, DCP, 2024
produced by Primeira Idade and OffShore
distributed by Portugal Film

Synopsis:
A pre-adolescent kid spends a family summer holiday at a touristic golf village. A newlybuilt water pond on a golf course becomes the backdrop to a mysterious encounter. And the discovery of an unknown other becomes the discovery of the unknown self.

Premiere:
IFFR (International Film Festival Rotterdam), Netherlands, 2024

Awards:
Revelation Award – Caminhos do Cinema Português, 2024, Coimbra
Curtas 2024 Awards – Best Screenplay; Best Child Performance (Ada Costa)
Dräxlmaier Best International Short Film Award – Landshut Short Film Festival, 2025

“Identity, punk, images of masculinity – and a child who conveys more through the intensity of his gaze than adults can in entire conversations. The film, to which we are awarding the prize for Best International Short Film, won us over with the power and lightness of its images, with which it addresses an important topic without forced importance. No adults, no explanations. Instead, drums and Barbie.
Two siblings playfully confront existential questions: Who am I? Who do I want to be? This is not only beautifully told cinematically, but also clever, because through its childlike innocence, the film avoids the common, often problematic, conflation of gender identity and sexuality. The backs of tattooed construction workers, a Ken buried in the grass, the rhythms tapped out on the drums – the images are in flow, in the truest sense of the word.”

Dräxlmaier Jury

Streaming Broadcast:
ARTETV – France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg

Festivals:
Go Short, 2024, Netherlands
Sunny Bunny, 2024, Ukraine
Pink Apple, 2024, Sweden
IndieLisboa, 2024, National Competition
Portuguese Film Showcase, 2024, Macau
Telluride Film Festival– Calling Cards section, curated by filmmaker and producer Barry Jenkins, , 2024, USA
Prishtina Festival, 2024, Kosovo
Indie Cork Film Festival, 2024, Ireland
Queer Porto, 2024, Portugal
Uppsala Short Film Festival, 2024, Sweden
FestCurtasBH – Belo Horizonte International Short Film Festival, 2024, Brazil
Pink Screens Film Festival, 2024, Belgium
Entre Olhares – Portuguese Film Showcase, 2024, Portugal
Sardinia Queer Film Expo, 2024, Italy
Actors Awards Ceremony – GDA Foundation, 2024, Portugal
Chéries-Chéris Film Festival, 2024, France
Caminhos do Cinema Português, 2024, Portugal
Mostra Que Desejo, 2024, Brazil
Laceno d’Oro, 2024, Italy
Stuttgarter Filmwinter – Festival for Expanded Media, 2025, Germany
PinX Short Film Festival, 2025, Belgium
Landshut Short Film Festival, 2025, Germany
International Film Festival of Uruguay, 2025, Uruguay
Batalha Centro de Cinema, 2025, Portugal
XPOSED Queer Film Festival Berlin, 2025, Germany
KASHISH Pride Film Festival, 2025, India
Palm Springs ShortFest, 2025, USA

CREDITS:
Directed and written by Alexander David
Writing team: Kate Saragaço-Gomes, Tiago Siopa, Vicente Paredes
Produced by Pedro Fernandes Duarte, Emmanuelle Latourrette and Fabrice Préel-Cléach
Cinematography: Marta Simões
Editing: Tiago Siopa
Sound Recording: Marcelo Tavares
Original Musical Soundtrack: Marcelo Tavares
Sound Editing: Benjamin Laurent
Sound Mixing: Xavier Thieulin
Art Direction in the shooting: Tiago Rodrigues
Art Direction in preparation: Afonso Costa
Color Correction: Caíque de Sousa
Lettering and design: Ariana Couvinha
Production Manager: Frederico Mesquita
First Assistant Director and Casting: Ricardo Branco
Second Assistant Director: Kate Saragaço-Gomes
Continuity & Script Advisor: Tomás Paula Marques
Production Coordination: Catarina Leite Ribeiro
Production Assistants: Beatriz Ribeiro, Alice Theoin and Polina Liviot
First Assistant Camera: Mafalda Fresco
Best Boy: Luiz Paulo Xein
Electrician: Inês Alegre
Machinery José Loureiro
Electrician backup: Lucas do Vale
Machinery backup: Ivan Mulé Casabón
Sound recordist backup: Vicente Molder
Wardrobe: Margarida do Carmo
Tattoo drawings: Sandra Vénus
Tattoos: Olga José
Original poster drawing : Ivo Francisco
Press kit design: Igor Ramos