Joana Madruga

A journey through the Brazilian Amazon, guided by the eyes of Renato, a Carioca turned Amazorioca. A reflection on identity, the legacy of an ancestral territory, and the cost of progress. An ode to the forest and the fragility of what remains.

In February 2022, I found a quote by Gonçalo Santa Ferreira at the Bombu Mininu bar in Mindelo, São Vicente, Cape Verde. “All is Wind on a Flying Island”

António Aleixo built his identity around the need for recognition. But when his body failed, he entered what he calls a "Silent Winter". A period in which everything that once seemed solid begins to collapse.

a post quarantine short documentary

A film about a paradise through the eyes of those who live there. From the weight of Leve Leve to the sour of Doce Doce.

One year after our first journey to the Amazon, we return not only to a place, but to a way of living. Through physical challenges and unexpected discomfort, this film captures a quiet process of transformation. A story about moving through discomfort to uncover an inner strength. More than a journey, a confrontation. More than a retreat, a return.

A journey through the Brazilian Amazon, guided by the eyes of Renato, a Carioca turned Amazorioca. A reflection on identity, the legacy of an ancestral territory, and the cost of progress. An ode to the forest and the fragility of what remains.

António Aleixo built his identity around the need for recognition. But when his body failed, he entered what he calls a "Silent Winter". A period in which everything that once seemed solid begins to collapse.

a post quarantine short documentary

A film about a paradise through the eyes of those who live there. From the weight of Leve Leve to the sour of Doce Doce.

One year after our first journey to the Amazon, we return not only to a place, but to a way of living. Through physical challenges and unexpected discomfort, this film captures a quiet process of transformation. A story about moving through discomfort to uncover an inner strength. More than a journey, a confrontation. More than a retreat, a return.

In a time when more and more children are given tablets and smartphones to play with, it's important we look at education and what's most important about it. Kids Sapiens Sapiens is an experimental short documentary sustained on the inputs of Pedro, Carolina and Yasmin on their own education. Sophia Award 2019 for Best Short Documentary by the Portuguese Film Academy