Artur Balder

Biography

In September 2004 he published his first literary work,The Monarch Stone, a children fantasy novel set in the early Middle Ages. Rights were acquired by Random House, and the novel was published again by Random House Penguin Group in 2011. Additionally Random House published the series Curdy, three books for young adults.

In 2008 he emigrated to the United States, settling in the city of New York.

Works

Artur Balder is the author of several children books, published and internationally distributed by Random House in Spain and South America. His historical fiction sagas, published by Edhasa, are inspired by Germanic heroes like Arminius in the times of ancient Rome, or the saxon duke Widukind, who led a rebellion during early Middle Ages against emperor Charlemagne. His books are translated into several languages. Among others: Dutch, Italian, French, Romanian,Polish, Catalan, English, Chinese.

Saga of Teutoburg

His best known literary work is the series Saga of Teutoburg of Roman Military fiction. Story is set in the territories of the Roman Empire at the boundaries of Germania Magna, covering the Roman conquest of Germania and the subsequent prolonged campaign undertaken by the Julio-Claudian dynasty. To date there are four books in the series. It is the longest and most extensive fictional work about the Germanic hero Arminius the Cheruscan. The work centers its attention in the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest and its consequences. All four episodes of the Saga of Teutoburg were distinguished as lifetime sacred text of Ásatrú religion by Odinist Community of Spain — Ásatrú, Spain, 2014.

Saga of Widukind

The series Chronicles of Widukind is focused on the Saxon rebel Widukind and his fight against Charlemagne, whose first title, The Codex of the Sword, was published in 2010. The second volume, The lords of Earth, was released in 2012 and the third volume The Spear of Destiny was released in May 2013. He is also a filmmaker and director of the film about Little Spain.

Little Spain

In 2010 he wrote and directed the documentary about Little Spain. Balder lived at the building of the Spanish Benevolent Society, known as La Nacional, for more than one year as resident artist. During this time and thanks to La Nacional's collaboration, he compiled archives on 14th Street that could show for first time the evolution of the streets of Little Spain in Manhattan since its origins. The documentary reveals the little known history of the Spanish American presence in the New York City borough of Manhattan, and its community around 14th Street, known as Little Spain. The archive contains a great number of old photographs and other documents that have never been publicly displayed, many of them part of La Nacional's archives. They present the history of the streets of Little Spain in New York City throughout the 20th Century.

Critical reception

The film was released in November 2014 and additionally received several reviews in the American entertainment media, where film critic Rafael Bernal wrote that the film is “a valuable addition to New York's immigration history”, “bringing with it the expected color and excitement of immigration, along with a few advantages over other American Dream documentaries”, adding ultimately: “Balder successfully illustrates the moods, flavors and excitement of recreating a far-away home”, with a “magnifying-glass perspective that serves to build an original story arc.” In the Spanish media, former US correspondent José María Carrascal wrote about the film that it was "the best Christmas present he could imagine". Film critic Fernando Campos wrote in New York that the director “won the Latin ACE Award for Best Documentary Film because of his magnificent and revealing “Little Spain”.'

American critic Donald Kuspit wrote at The Huffington Post: Balder's documentary is a work of art, moving subtly between different situations and individuals, showing their relationship with formal acumen as well as empirical accuracy. Little Spain is a kind of masterpiece, in that it masters its subject matter even as it shows Balder's mastery of his medium.

The film, that is dedicated to Federico García Lorca and includes lines from his work Poet in New York, was awarded Best Documentary Film in the competition category by the Association of Latin Entertainment Critics of New York.

Art documentaries

In May 2013 the film directed by Balder Ciria pronounced thiria was premiered at the MoMA in New York City, a documentary film about contemporary art sponsored by Spanish company Telefónica. The film was premiered by the Martin Gropius Bau in Berlin in November 2013.

In 2015 a second collaboration with the Museum of Modern Art took place with the premiere of a documentary about Spanish artist Joan Castejón.

Awards

(2012).

Saga of Teutoburg

The saga has won the Total Art Work Prize 2013 from the Sapanish Wagner Society.

1. The last Cheruscan (2005). Ediciones B. ISBN 978-84-9872-805-7
2. Liberator Germaniae (2006). Ediciones B. ISBN 978-84-9872-806-4
3. The Battle of Destiny (2007). Ediciones B. ISBN 978-84-9872-807-1
4. Twilight of the Aesir (2007). Ediciones B. ISBN 978-84-666-5332-9

Saga of Widukind

1. The Codex of the Sword. EDHASA, 2010. ISBN 978-84-350-6180-3
2. The Lords of Earth. EDHASA, 2012. ISBN 978-84-350-6181-0
3. The Spear of Destiny. EDHASA, 2012. ISBN 978-84-350-6182-7

Curdy series

1. Curdy y la Cámara de los Lores. Montena (Random House Mondadori), 2007. ISBN 978-84-8441-331-8
2. Curdy y el Cetro de Carlomagno. Montena (Random House Mondadori), 2009. ISBN 978-84-8441-436-0
3. Curdy y el Vampiro de Gothland. Montena (Random House Mondadori), 2011. ISBN 978-84-8441-922-8

Other

1. 2001: homenaje a Kubrick. Galería Muro, 2001.
2. El Anillo del Nibelungo. Galería Argenta, 2003.
3. La Piedra del Monarca. The Magic Rider, 2004. ISBN 84-934076-0-7
4. MonarchStone. Montena, Random House Mondadori S.A., 2011. ISBN 978-84-8441-650-0

Short films

Documentary Films

Legal controversies

In July 2015, Artur Balder prosecuted criminally Spanish reporter Almudena Ariza after she reportedly insulted him via email. The Association of Latin Entertainment Critics of New York published the conclusions of its Ethic Commission, presided by journalist Frank Castro, on its official website: "We consider inadmissible these practices based on bare offensive insults used by Ms. Ariza, which should not be tolerated in the journalistic environment and information management, and still are more serious because they come from the national public television of Spain, RTVE’s United States bureau".

After all this was widely known in the Spanish media, in September 2016 Artur Balder was fined 30,000€ in Spain for defamation of Almudena Ariza, allegedly sparked after said journalist decided not to include material of his documentary Little Spain in a piece aired on Spanish national television on the same subject, after contacting him publicly via twitter. According to the sentence, he was found guilty of insulting her online and spreading misinformation with the intent of causing "the most damage possible to her honor, image and professionalism". The sentence is not final and can be subject to appeal.