João Mota

A theatre having national as part of its name, at the top of a square, reflecting a country’s history. But which one? This is a voyage through the various narratives about D. Maria II National Theatre, forged through the intentions of the several regimes that intended to convey their own ideologies within the theatre’s mission. This is also the story of those who fought against it, opposed the institution and became part of it. How can one become heir of these stories, even if never having set foot inside.

"Laurinha," the documentary, brings back from oblivion and silence the great Laura Alves, one of the best Portuguese actresses of all time. In this documentary, we get to know a woman with boundless energy and unafraid to speak her mind. We discover her life, the people she shared moments with, her family, and her loves. We also explore what motivated her immense dedication to her work and confront her tragic, premature end, marked by illness and loneliness.

Laura doesn't know what to do with her loneliness. She gets involved in multiple games of seduction, unable to go home alone, without someone to share her affections with. She confides in her sister, Sara, they share dinners, they confide their fears. Laura feels she has to change, to escape the chaos that her life has become, especially when her children surprise her with a stranger in her bed. She then seeks out her mother, as if trying to reconcile with her.

Entangled in crime since childhood, Zeca Mouro experienced probation, reform school, and jail through expediency and marginality. His life is thus defined by crime and atonement.

"The Butterfly in the Cage" is a novel by Luís Filipe Costa adapted to film by the author, it follows the daily lives of several people connected to newspapers, television, film and theater in Lisbon, in the days leading up to the revolution of 25 April 1974.

O Outro Teatro proposes a look at the independent theater manifestations that came in the wake of the pioneering gestures of Teatro Experimental do Porto.

The Soares are a bourgeois couple, living in a good neighbourhood of Lisbon, but João, their son, is not integrating well in that pattern. He attends more political meetings than classes at the Faculty of Economy, and gets a job but that's short lived because his female boss makes him her lover. He longs for the coffee shops, and the companions of old, but he doesn't get true love from anyone.

José and Maria, a young, devout couple in a remote Portuguese fishing village, take a vow of chastity on their wedding night to honor a religious pact. Their commitment is pushed to the breaking point when they rescue a mysterious, wounded stranger and bring him into their home. As the outsider’s presence ignites repressed desires and jealousy, the couple's sacred promise leads to a violent confrontation with the local community's superstitions.

A Marialist nobleman falls in love with a fado singer, who puts an end to the ephemeral relationship, accepting the love of a teenager, recently arrived from Africa.