Pandora da Cunha Telles

Clear Nights

Two siblings face their problems and undergo a profound inner transformation at a time when they both rediscover themselves. Lidia struggles to cope with her newborn baby: she can’t handle the expectations, doesn’t recognize her body, and distances herself from home and her boyfriend. Her brother Lauro works in a funeral agency. Divorced with a son, he grapples with accepting his bisexuality. Though the siblings rarely saw each other, their shared challenges bring them closer on a journey of rediscovery and profound inner transformation. The light at the end of the tunnel isn’t an illusion; the tunnel is.

Shrooms

Follows Dan, a young Venezuelan man currently living in Lisbon, who collects magic mushrooms in the forest and distributes them in the city to those in need of help - like a New Age Robin Hood - using pigeons as carriers.

Mother Knows Best

The family of Ana Luisa meets at home to celebrate her father's birthday. As the guests sit around the table they will share memories of the past, in which all have a common denominator: the late Josefa, Ana Luisa's mother. Hearing the stories, Ana Luisa realizes the impact that his late mother had on their life choices and imagines what would have happened if she had followed other paths, taken other options and said what was unsaid. At the same time, an event of unknown origin causes a change in space and time, enabling people all over the world the access to parallel universes. Ana Luisa will thus have the opportunity to change the past...

Florbela

Shaken by a divorce in the 1920s, Portuguese poetess Florbela Espanca uses her writing to deal with her tumultuous relationship with men, eroticism and love.

Your Face Will be the Last

Adaptation of the novel of the same name, by João Ricardo Pedro.

Palma

Faced with the shock of an unexpected death, Sara finds herself trapped in a maze of pain, loneliness, and abandonment. As she travels through it, she seeks consolation in the justification of that fatality that shook her so much. But what he finds is not what he expected. With elements such as flowers, blackness or Entrudo monsters, it is a surrealist journey about death and the different rituals of mourning.

Paloma

On a hot summer day, Paloma decides to fulfill her most cherished dream: a traditional wedding in a church with her boyfriend Zé. She is a devoted mother, a hard-working farmhand in a papaya plantation and has been saving to afford the celebration. The priest’s refusal to marry her and Zé will force Paloma to confront the rural society. She suffers violence, betrayal, prejudice and injustice but nothing shakes the faith and determination of this transgender woman.

The Club of Angels

Over the years, the monthly meetings of the Stew Club – a fraternity that has gathered seven long-time friends for decades – has gone from rituals of power to melancholic failure assemblies. The end would be its only worthy fate. Until a mysterious cook appears, and starts serving them magnificent feasts. The bonds of friendship are back, gluttony as a celebration of life. But there is a catch: after each dinner, a member of the brotherhood is found dead the next morning.

Gaza Mon Amour

In Gaza, 60-year-old fisherman Issa has been secretly in love with Siham, a widow who works at the market. One day, the discovery of an ancient phallic statue of Apollo in his fishing net changes his life. With newfound confidence, he decides to approach Siham but problems arise when authorities become involved with this mysterious and potent treasure.

Dehesa: The Forest of the Iberian Lynx

A documentary about a unique type of forest, the "dehesa" of the Iberian Peninsula, a world in which to discover unique sensations.

Out in the Open

A boy escaped from home, listening, crouched in the depths of his hiding place, the cries of the men who seek him. When the game passes, what remains before him is an infinite and arid plain that he must cross if he wants to get away definitively from what has made him flee. His steps will intersect with those of a pastor and, from that moment, nothing will be the same for either of them.

522. A Cat, a Chinese Guy and My Father

George, an agoraphobic young woman, cannot go more than 522 steps away from her home. One day, a personal tragedy forces her to embark on a journey from Spain to her native Portugal. Along the way, George's whole world begins to widen…

Sunburn

A modern villa in the dry Portuguese summer landscape. The sun scorching bright high in the sky, four well-built bodies - three male, one female - hanging out by the pool, on the porch, in the bedrooms. All seem to be waiting for something, or as it soon turns out - someone. Scene by scene we are revealed the complex interpersonal relations and the most important, the relation of all the characters with the one who is being waited for. Who is that mythical person and what will happen when he finally arrives?

Sousa Martins

The doctor of the King of Portugal was so good in his hospital practice, that after his death both King and country peasants worshiped him - to this day, 120 years later.

Maria

Maria spends her daytime sewing and cleaning, while at night she works as a prostitute in Oporto's streets. Years ago her path crossed with José, a married man who became her most faithful client but who couldn't help her to escape the hard life. Today this old prostitute continues showing off her body through the long city's nights, though the clients are almost gone. José is still there, but he failed at what she desired the most: a son. In a very intimate and raw portray of a woman, MARIA disclosures how love and getting older can feels like.

3 Anos Depois

A woman returns. Now that the night has fallen, a storm approaches.

The Train of Salt and Sugar

In 1989, Mozambique is a country ruined by civil war. The train that connects Nampula to Malawi is the only hope for people willing to risk their lives to exchange a few bags of salt for sugar. Running slowly over sabotaged tracks, the journey is filled with obstacles and violence. Mariamu, a frequent traveler, shares her trip with her friend Rosa, a nurse who is going to her new hospital, living the reality of war for the first time, Lieutenant Taiar, who only knows the reality of his military life, and another soldier, Salomão, with whom he doesn’t get along. Amongst bullets and laughter, stories of love and war unfold as the train advances towards the next stop.

Autumn

His school is closed. There are no other children on those mountains. To keep studying, this young kid must go to another place - unknown place. He finds haven in places he knows. Deep into autumn and this caterpillar still not a butterfly

J.A.C.E.

Twice-orphaned Jace, a seven-year-old Albanian of Greek origin, witnesses a massacre that wipes out his entire foster family in Argyrokastron, and then falls in the hands of a bunch of ruthless gangsters who "export" children abroad for various profitable reasons (ranging from beggary to organ trade). Jace ends up in Athens, Greece, begging at street corners, exploring the secret horrors of brutal institutions for young offenders or, much later, serving obscure patrons, in an underworld where violent loss seems to be his only destiny. The movie follows Jace's inverted Odyssey in a dark universe of abuse, murder and fear, as he desperately (and silently) seeks for a "family" of his own or, at least, for a sense of belonging

Carta Para o Futuro

Socialism in Cuba by the eyes of four generations of Cubans.

Bonsai

A young writer recounts an earlier romance in hopes of attracting his new love interest.

How to Draw a Perfect Circle

Guilherme and Sofia, brother and sister, grow up sharing experiences and slowly discovering their sexuality. The thing that Sofia doesn't know is how far Guilherme will go to keep her inside his own perverse, dark and perfect circle.

True and Tender is the North

Adaptation of a 1987 novel by Agustina Bessa Luis, a multi-generation exploration of a wealthy family with a mysterious past and a house on the island of Madeira.

The Mystery of Sintra

Summer of 1870. Two writers, Eça de Queiroz and Ramalho Ortigão, decide to write a four-handed whodunit for the daily "Diário de Notícias". Could it be that the story they wrote as fiction is based on a real case? This question fuels the conflict between the two writers and drives them to a nearly fatal duel. Lisbon is in commotion. One crime follows another in a story in which love is stronger than tradition. Everything happens at frenzied pace, as in a game.

Flesh of My Flesh

A woman alone with her secret until one day she can not hold it any longer.

Maria e as Outras

Maria, an executive from Oporto, lives in the search of the right man for her. On the other hand, her two friends, Joana, a doctor that has fallen in love to a co-worker, and Isilda, a hairdresser with an open hart and an adventurous spirit, seem to be happy with their lives. One day though, everything changes. Maria is forced to take care of her father, victim of a brain accident. During these days of turbulence, Maria thinks she has found the perfect man, a mysterious Star, an habitué of chat channels on the Internet. The three friends find out that cense of humour can be the key for a happy life. Internet, romance, a bachelor party; marriage, dates and some adventures are Loving Maria. A film where love shows himself with the most different looks. Love arrives when you don't expect it and goes away when you think it is safe. It can even appear in the light of a mobile computer.

Wounded

Nourished by grief, silence drains the life of a couple who have lost their child. The mother refuses to speak, transforming their home into a place of mourning where memories poison her relationship with her husband.

Greice

Greice, a Brazilian girl studying in Lisbon, gets involved with a mysterious guy and ends up getting accused of a strange incident that occurs at the students' welcoming party, which forces her to return to her hometown to renew her residence permit. Hidden in a hotel, while preventing her mother from discovering she’s back in the country and with the help of some friends, Greice tries to find a place of comfort in the world.

Vermelho Monet

Follows the story of Johannes Van Almeida, a painter who was just released from prison and wants to start his life anew, but everything changes when art dealer Antoinette, and international actress in crisis Florence Lizz, get in his way.

Cândido

A national coach working in Lisbon during World War II also acted as a spy for the Allies, leading a risky double life

Foremost by Night

Exploring the issue of stolen children in Spain, the plot tracks Vera’s search for her biological son, given in adoption, thereby coming across Cora and her adoptive son Egoz.

Amadeo

Amadeo: a mysteriously restless and indefatigable man as if always sensing brevity of the time he had left. An artist out of definition, whose painting questions the painting itself, indomitable, scandalous and misunderstood. For being «Infinitely» according Almada, is someone who never had the time within him. How many lives are there in Amadeo de Souza Cardoso’s brief life?

Quando o Diabo Reza

On one side, a bunch of crooks. On the other, two sisters. Nothing unites them except an idea: to relieve the bank account of an old man, who happens to be the sisters' father. The crooks devise a plan to gain his trust and swindle him. The sisters make plans for the last years of their father's life without neglecting the small detail of the inheritance. Each one in their own way, they all dream of the possibilities that the old man's money could bring them. But this one will not be easy prey.

Vadio

Thirteen year-old André lives isolated with his father in the dry region of Alentejo, helping with his water well drilling business instead of going to school. When his father suddenly disappears, André must turn to the only neighbor in miles, a young mother named Sandra, as the only chance of finding him.

The Art of Dying Far Away

Can a turtle, the most pacific animal on earth, start a range of significant events that are going to forever change a couple's life? After dividing all their assets, Arnaldo e Barbara still have one decision to make before they formalize their separation: what to do with the turtle? Amongst hesitation and failed solutions, unintended burglaries, police stations, plastic natures and misunderstandings, a single turtle fate is postponing this couple's separation. Because they know that, when they give the turtle back to its natural habitat, their relationship will be over. Are they ready for that last step?

Lupo

The Italian Rino Lupo directed some of the most important silent films of Portuguese cinema. Pedro Lino develops, in Lupo, an investigation about the director, discovering one of the mysteries that surrounded him, the year and place of his death.

The Sound of Masks

Atanásio Nyusi, a compelling storyteller and legendary Mapiko dancer, takes us on a visually dramatic journey through Mozambique's past and present.

The Man Who Killed Don Quixote

Toby, a cynical film director finds himself trapped in the outrageous delusions of an old Spanish shoe-maker who believes himself to be Don Quixote. In the course of their comic and increasingly surreal adventures, Toby is forced to confront the tragic repercussions of a film he made in his idealistic youth.

Soldier Millions

A Portuguese soldier, who got stranded from his team during the La Lys battle, struggles by himself through dozens of German offensives so he can guarantee the safety of his companions.

Vazante

Brazil 1821. Upon his return to the imposing farmhouse, Antonio, a rich cattle herder, finds out that his wife dies in labor. Forced to live in the property with numerous African slaves, he marries his wife's niece. A restless soul, he returns to droving, leaving his young wife behind alone with the slaves.

Al Berto

Portugal, 1975. A time of rough changes. A young gay artist trapped in a small seaside town ran by communist winds. Al Berto, the writer, embodies an entire moving generation. He and his friends exude youth, eccentricity and hope for the future - but right after the fall of Portugal's dictatorship system, the country is not yet ready for his love story.

Joaquim

Brazil, 18th century. The colony of Portugal endures a decline in gold production. A Portuguese minority rules over a corrupt and autocratic society. Joaquim is an efficient soldier, famous for capturing gold smugglers. While waiting for his promotion to Lieutenant, he leaves for a risky mission in search of new gold mines - the only way to buy the freedom of Blackie, a slave he is in love with. Inspired by the true story of Tiradentes, the first leader of the Brazilian revolutionary movement.

Miami

A teenage girl's dream of becoming famous turns into a dangerous obsession.

Zoo

A six-year-old girl once more silently witnesses a family break up. Her father comes back with an invitation for a day out.

América

In a Portuguese village by the sea, a family sees their house become a transit point to innumerous migrants due to a passport forgery business created by its patriarch, Vítor, and his Spanish ex-wife Fernanda. His Russian wife Liza and his son Mauro—who stops talking—see the newcomers alter the dynamics, relationships and aspirations of the house's residents.

Under My Skin

On a day like any other, a woman leaves work and heads to a party in the outskirts of Lisbon. On her way there she sees a man ready to jump off a bridge. She stops the car and approaches the man, trying to save him.

Optical Illusions

A blind man who recovers his sight after an operation finds his life in chaos when he is rejected by the community to which he once belonged.

Muitos Dias Tem o Mês

A view of rising dependence to credits in the shadow of a overgrowing economical crisis in a consumers society.

Sleepwalking Land

In the midst of Mozambique's devastating civil war, Muidinga, an orphaned refugee, wanders the countryside in search of his mother. His only companion is an elderly storyteller, and the only guide to finding his mother is a dead man's diary. This transporting drama underscores the power of imagination in surviving, and ultimately overcoming, the catastrophe of war.

Kiss Me

This movie bring us a story about a woman named Laura (Marisa Cruz) that lives in a small portuguese town during the 50's. Tired of living in such a small town she travells to a bigger town, in which she'll have the opportunity to feel free.

A Casa Esquecida

Ivo and Tomás, two volunteered vagabonds who feed their souls of ways and great winds. From time to time they make a stop, renting their arms, the necessary time to be able to, provisions made, get on the road again. Once, with the sun at its peak and a burning heat, the desert that they are crossing seems to be endless. They run out of water… in the end of the day, without any strength left, they let themselves fall near to a dried bush. Ivo stares at the moon rising, as is saying farewell and whispering verses of a poem of a lawyer they’ve met before. It is then that he sees a far light. They set their way to that house…

Hollow City

A group of children, fleeing the war, is taken to Luanda accompanied by a nun. When they reach the aeroplane, 12-year-old N'Dala decides to leave the group and to reconnoitre the city. The nun then starts her unceasing quest for the missing boy. N'Dala, only carrying a textile bag and a doll made of wire, walks through the busy streets filled with people and traffic. Later he finds the tranquility of the island off the coast, where he meets the old fisherman Antonio, with whom he becomes friends. Not much later, he meets the lively, whimsical Zé, who is a little older than he is. N'Dala starts to experience the city and its inhabitants as increasingly forbidding and he would most like to return to the countryside from whence he came. Then he meets Joka, a fringe figure who persuades him to help with a robbery in exchange for money. With this film, Maria Joao Ganga wanted to provide a realistic sketch of the bitter political situation in Angola. One of her most important motivations ...