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CLASSIFIEDS info@mediatoday.com.mt 8 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 5 JULY 2026 CULTURE & CLASSIFIEDS A Flutter of Lang's Short-tailed Blue Butterflies By Paul C. Saliba FOLLOWING the interesting phenomena lately of the Paint- ed Lady migration over the Maltese Islands, I started to ob- serve more attentively the nat- ural habitat in order to record any unusual occurrence among the vegetation. Within the same days of this vast migration, while walking along a street in Sliema, which is a densely ur- ban area where greenery is very scarce, I noticed in a front gar- den, hundreds of Lang's Short- tailed Blue butterflies (Leptotes pirithous) flying and resting on the Sea Ragwort plant (Jaco- baea maritima subsp. Sicula; Kromb il-bahar). The Lang's Short-tailed Blue is also a migratory butterfly that annually reaches Malta from North Africa during the late spring to the early summer months. This butterfly is wide- spread across the Maltese Is- lands, usually flying in gardens on the flowers of the Plumba- go, a plant with blue flowers, but it has also been noticed in valleys. The male and female carry a slender tail consisting of a thin hair on each of their hind wings. The male is of vi- olet-blue while the female is rather brownish with a tinge of blue. Their underside is brown- ish grey with wavy white lines. I could not deduce wheth- er this flutter of Short-tailed Blues are the result of migra- tion or are local broods. There are actually three broods, the first one is on the wing from March to April, the second from July-August while the third one is from October to December. What I know for sure is the Short-tailed Blues are still hovering in large num- bers in the garden with the Sea Ragwort plant. The Last Straw triumphs in Malta and heads to New York A double recognition and a new international showcase for The Last Straw, the short film pro- duced by GDG Production, which continues to gain recognition across the festival circuit. The film, written and starring Gabriele Kris- tian Faraca, directed and edited by Gustavo Garrafa, and produced by Deborah Rocco, impressed both the audience and the jury at the first edition of the D Golden Pro- tagonist Short Film Festival 2026, hosted at Eden Cinemas in St. Ju- lian's, Malta. The film received two important awards: the "Excellence in Foreign Filmmaking" Award, presented by the jury for excellence in inter- national film production, and the Audience Choice Award, voted directly by the audience attending the screening. A significant achievement for the project, which stood out both among industry professionals and viewers, who selected The Last Straw as their favourite film of the 2026 edition after the screenings. The D Golden Protagonist Short Film Festival, directed by Chris- tian Attard Sciberras, was created to celebrate independent cinema and films capable of standing out for their storytelling quality, orig- inality, and performances. During the final event, the short film was screened on the big screen alongside the other finalists in front of the Eden Cinemas au- dience. Representing the film were director Gustavo Garrafa and lead actor Gabriele Kristian Faraca, who received the awards on behalf of the production. An Italian creative team The Last Straw was born from the collaboration between writing, performance, directing, and pro- duction. Gabriele Kristian Faraca created the story and portrays the main character, while Gustavo Garrafa directed and edited the film. The production was handled by Deborah Rocco, producer of GDG Production. A collaborative effort that allowed the short film to find its place in the independ- ent film landscape, bringing a new Italian production to the attention of an international audience. From Malta to New York: The trailer arrives in the United States The success achieved in Mal- ta now opens a new opportunity overseas: the trailer of The Last Straw will be presented in New York during the One Day Dance Fest, thanks to an opportunity made possible by Eleonora Fae, artistic director of the Malta Dance Film Festival. The United States showcase rep- resents another important step in the film's international journey and confirms the growing interest surrounding the short film within the global festival circuit. With two awards won at the D Golden Protagonist Short Film Festival and a new international appearance in the United States, The Last Straw continues its jour- ney through independent cinema, highlighting the creative work of GDG Production and its team.