Carrol Ballard

Born 1937, LA. He studied at the UCLA and was classmate of Francis Ford Coppola who, as executive producer of THE BLACK STALLION (1979) choose Ballard to direct it. The film, presented at the GFF 1981, was his first feature and tells the story of the friendship between a boy and an animal, both of them survived to a shipwreck. After this debut film, Ballard directed other productions for children and young people such as FLY AWAY HOME (1996) and NUTCRACKER: THE MOTION PICTURE (1986).

Director’s statement

“After reading a Laurence van der Post story many years ago, I always wanted to make a film like that story – the thought of a young Tarzan kind of movie was very appealing to me. It didn’t happen then, but I somehow held this hope that someday I’d be able to make a similar kind of film, and DUMA came along and really fit the bill. It’s a grand adventure that crosses half of a continent”.