Sofía is Just Nine
by Pat Frickey

The youngest person to ever win the top prize, the Silver Bear for Best Leading Performance, is nine-year-old Sofía Otero, for a brilliant performance in 20,000 SPECIES OF BEES (20,000 ESPECIES DE ABEJAS). Sitting in the audience at the Berlinale Palast she was flabbergasted to hear her name through her translation headphones. She undauntedly climbed the steps to the stage to accept the award. Like a true pro, though this is her first movie, Sofía robotically started thanking the jury, the team including her hairdresser, the director… then as the shock abated, she smiled and honed in on her family and in a delightful squeal called out to her father “Fernando Otero the best father in the world”, to her mother who “she loves to bits”, and to her Aunt Lena. As a couple of tears streamed down her face no one in the audience was left untouched. Even if they had not seen her outstanding film debut, they recognized Sofía as a delightful force to be reckoned with.