
a film by pema tseden
BALLOON
in cinemas 24 september 2021
A BFI FAN NEW RELEASE
Drama | 102 mins | China 2019
Tibetan | 12A
The Tibetan plateau in the 1980s. No more condoms. No more children allowed. No easy answers.
A lyrical and beguiling film from one of the world’s finest directors.
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Sex, faith and politics collide in Pema Tseden's exceptional new film. When Drolkar’s two boisterous youngest sons blow up the household’s few remaining condoms, mistaking them for balloons, she’s left with an impossible decision. China has just introduced its One Child Policy and with three children already, there’s no way she can have another. But her husband, Dargye, is still as horny as one of his prize rams...
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Tseden deftly balances his challenging subject matter with moments of humour and great tenderness. With its cool colour palette, attentive handheld camerawork, and painterly passages that seem to transpire somewhere between this world and the next, Balloon approaches its story with a sense of wonder and features scene-stealing performances from the two young boys.
AWARDS
Nominated: Best Film — 76th Venice International Film Festival (Horizons Section)
Special Mention: Sfera 1932 Award — 76th Venice International Film Festival
Winner: Silver Hugo, Best Screenplay — Chicago Interational Film Festival 2019
Winner: Grand Prize — Tokyo Filmex 2019
Winner: Best Director & Best Screenplay — Shanghai International Film Festival 2020
Nominated: Best Director, Best Screenwriter & Best Cinematographer — Asian Film Awards 2020
Nominated: NETPAC Award, Best Picture & Best Director — Asian Film Critics Association Awards 2020

THE DIRECTOR
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​Pema Tseden was born on 3 December 1969 to a family of nomadic herders in the Amdo region of Tibet. Pema long held a fascination for storytelling, both through literature and cinema. As a writer, he had numerous works published in both Tibetan and Mandarin, many having been translated into other various other languages.
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Pema became the first ethnic Tibetan to attend the prestigious Beijing Film Academy where he studied directing and scriptwriting. He was particularly influenced by Tibetan cultural traditions, oral literature and folk tales, depicting striking representations of a largely unknown Tibet and contemporary Tibetan society to the wider world. All of Pema’s films are shot in his native Amdo and are either entirely or mostly in his native Amdo dialect of Tibetan.
​On 8 May 2023, at over 4,400m above sea level near the high-altitude lake of Yamdruk Tso, Pema was suddenly taken ill and passed away at the age of 53.
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Pema is widely considered to be the leading light of the 'Tibetan New Wave' - a pioneer and trailblazer who inspired a new generation of Tibetan filmmakers inside Tibet working amid challenging conditions.​
CREDITS
Written and Directed by Pema Tseden
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Cast: Sonam Wangmo, Jinpa, Yangshik Tso
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Director of Photography: Lu Songye
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Editors: Liao Ching-Sung, Jin Di
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Music: Peyman Yazdanian
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Producers: Huang Xufeng, Jacky Pang
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Co-Producers: Liang Ying, Song Jia

A BFI FAN NEW RELEASE
We're delighted to be partnering with the BFI Film Audience Network for the release of Balloon.
As a BFI FAN New Release title, BFI FAN members can expect:
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Audio descriptive and captioned versions of the film
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Marketing pack and assets including programme notes
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Freelance marketing support in every Film Hub area
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Pre-recorded Q&A with film talent available (information coming soon)
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Advice from Inclusive Cinema for exhibitors putting on accessible screenings
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Budget for Facebook/social media ads
Click here to find out more about the BFI FAN New Release scheme.
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FOR BOOKINGS OF BALLOON PLEASE CONTACT:
Supported by Film Hub Scotland, part of the BFI’s Film Audience Network, and funded by Screen Scotland and Lottery funding from the BFI.
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THE BALLOONS OF CINEMA
To celebrate the launch of Balloon, we partnered with BFI FAN to commission a short essay film from the writer and video essayist, Jessica McGoff. The film explores the role of balloons in film across the ages. You can watch it below. To find out details of when our own Balloon will take flight in cinemas, scroll down for a list of Upcoming Screenings.
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SCREENINGS
We'll be adding more screenings to this list soon. Follow us on social media to receive the latest updates.
SCOTLAND
Dundee Contemporary Arts: 24 – 30 September
Filmhouse, Edinburgh: 1 – 7 October
Glasgow Film Theatre: 1 – 7 October
Belmont Filmhouse, Aberdeen: 8 – 14 October
Robert Burns Centre, Dumfries: 18 & 19 October
Macrobert Arts Centre, Stirling: 11 – 14 October
Eden Court Inverness: 18 – 21 October
An Lanntair Arts Centre, Stornoway: 21 October
Hippodrome Cinema, Bo'ness: 22 – 28 October
Cromarty Cinema: 24 October
NORTHERN IRELAND
Queen's Film Theatre, Belfast: 17 – 19 October
NORTH ENGLAND
Leeds International Film Festival: 22 September
(Preview Screening)
HOME, Manchester: 24 – 30 September
Showroom Sheffield: 1 – 7 October
Hebden Bridge Picture House: 5 October
Brewery Arts Centre, Kendal: 20 & 21 October
Forum Cinema Hexham: 26 October
Lonsdale Alhambra, Penrith: 21 November
Keswick Alhambra: 12 December
MIDLANDS
Broadway Nottingham: 11 & 12 October
Leicester Phoenix: 25 – 28 October
Northampton Filmhouse: 28 October
Buxton Film: 22 November
Louth Film Club: 29 November
LONDON
ICA: 24 – 30 September
Barbican: 27 September, 2 & 3 October
Castle Cinema, Hackney: 24 – 30 September
Catford Mews: 1 – 7 October
Cinema in the Arches: 16 November
south EAST ENGLAND
Reading Biscuit Factory: 24 – 30 September
Depot Lewes: 1 – 7 October
Hitchin Films: 1 October
Saffron Screen: 4 October
Royston Picture Palace: 10 October
Ultimate Picture Palace, Oxford: 15 – 22 October
Gulbenkian Canterbury: 17 October
Chichester New Park: 17 & 19 October
Firstsite Colchester: 18, 20 & 21 October
South Hill Park: 22 & 23 November
south WESt ENGLAND
Watershed, Bristol: 24 – 30 September
Regent Centre, Christchurch: 25 & 29 September
Exeter Phoenix: 8 –14 October
The Courtyard, Hereford: 11, 18 & 25 October
Gloucester Guildhall: 15 – 22 October
Regal Cinema, Fordingbridge: 20 October
Plymouth Arts Cinema: 22 – 28 October
Strode Theatre: 4 November
Totnes Cinema: 4 & 7 November
Cheltenham Film Society: 9 November
Stroud Film Society: 9 November
The Roses, Tewkesbury: 12 & 17 November
WALES
Galeri Caernarfon: 27 September
Chapter, Cardiff: 1 – 7 October
Aberystwyth Arts Centre: 13 & 14 October
Ludlow Assembly Rooms: 30 Nov & 2 Dec



