Fantasporto

March 8th - a very rainy Friday in Porto : a perfect alibi to linger in the theatres, and particularly in the brand new and comfortable Batalha Cinema Center which hosts for the second time Fantasporto after decades at Rivoli running films in two rooms all afternoon till late in the night. 

Quite frankly the seating and the sound quality  are such a major improvement, thank God, and thanks to Mario and Beatriz for moving to this great location.

ROOM 1

14: 15 Baby Assassins 2 – Babies – Hugo Sakamoto - 100´ (Japan) CF/OE- thriller, action, voice, English leg, leg. port

After the success of “Baby Assassins”, presented at Fantas, the sequel arrives. Two girls, Chisato and Mahiro, share the same apartment and their relationship is not easy. Furthermore, they are both paid assassins. However, they were prohibited from executing orders because they violated the organization's rules. Needing money to pay their expenses, they resume their activities as mascots. Suddenly, two other killers chase them. Humor and martial arts at great speed and intensity in an unexpected script.

Hugo Sakamoto

Japanese director known for “Baby Assassins” (2021), already screened in Fantasporto, “Hangman’s Knot” (2017) and “Yellow Dragon’s Village” (2021)

16: 15 The Invisible Fight- Rainer Sarnet- 116' – (Estonia) CF- fantastic comedy, vo, leg engl, leg port

A rocker and former guard on the border between the Soviet Union and China, after being attacked, decides to go to an Orthodox monastery where the monks mix religion and Kung Fu. In a visual delirium that also mixes heavy metal and a crying Madonna, the rocker seeks to be accepted by the monks. The first lesson he receives is humility. Coming from the director of “November”, which received 24 international awards and was shown at Fantasporto 2018 where it received the Special Jury Prize and Best Cinematography. This film is part of the selection for the Sitges, Locarno and Warsaw Festivals.

Rainer Sarnet

Director and writer from Estonia, known for “November” (2017), awarded in Fantasporto 2018 and already grantes 24 international prizes. It was followed by the TV series “The Bank” (2018) and “Vaino Vahingu Paevaraamat” (2021).

18:30 Post Mortem- Péter Bergendy - 115’ (Hun) 2021- Retrospectiva Visions of Hungarian Cinema- terror fantástico, v.o., leg ingl, leg. port

A photographer, a former soldier from the First World War, who takes family photographs with his dead, as was the custom at the time. He arrives in a village that was caught by the Spanish Flu and is surrounded by frightening ghosts. With dozens of dead to be buried due to the freezing ground, unable to resolve the mortality of the epidemic, man will try to help them. This is the first Hungarian horror film to rival the great American productions, also reminiscent of great classics such as the Soviet “Viyi”. Trieste Festival Selection. “Post-Mortem” won the awards for Best Director and Best Screenplay at Fantasporto 2021.

Péter Bergendy

Director Péter Bergendy was born in 1964. He originally graduated in Psychology, with a thesis on horror films. As a filmmaker, he made award-winning commercials. Her first feature film was the comedy “Stop Mom Teresa! ” in 2004. This was followed by “The Exam”, awarded at the Chicago festival in 2012 and “Trezor”, the first Hungarian television film nominated for an Emmy, in 2020.

21:00 - Megalomaniac- Karim Ouelhaj – 100' (Belg) Grand Prix Fantasporto 2023- Retrospective Karim Ouelhaj –horror, vo, leg engl, leg port

Brothers Martha and Felix live in a large, old house left to them by their father, the notorious Butcher of Mons. In addition to this inheritance, Martha tries to protect her brother who, like his father, is a serial killer. Abused at work, Martha has to find a balance between Felix's violence and the traumas in her own life. Film that won the important Cheval Noir Prize at the Fantasia Festival (Canada) is another good example of modern Belgian horror cinema. Excellent performance by Eline Schumacher, in her first film role.

Karim Ouelhaj

was selected for the Venice Festival in the official Giornatti degli Autori Venice Days section. This film also won the Federico Fellini Prize in 2006 in the USA, among other awards. It was the first feature film in a triptych dedicated to society, which included “La Repas du Singe” (2013), Best Actress at the Rome Festival, and “Une Realité para Seconde” (2015). In 2016, his fantastic short film “L'Oeil Silencieux” won the Grand Prize and the Méliès D'Argent at the Brussels Festival and was selected, and awarded, at numerous festivals. “Megalomaniac” (2022), his fourth feature film, inspired by the true story of the Butcher of Mons, won more than 20 international awards, including Best Film at Fantasia (Canada), Best Horror Film at the Macabro Film Festival (Mexico) and Best Film, Director and Actress at Fantasporto 2023.

23: 15 Woman in the Maze - Mitesh Patel 101´ (USA) CF- horror, fantastic, English voice, leg port

A woman rents a house and nothing happens that she expected. For some reason, when trapped between those walls, the woman has to find a solution to free herself and finally leave the house. A story of despair and horror.

Mitesh Kumar Patel

The director was born in India and studied Fine Arts. In 2011 he made “The Man in the Maze”, followed by “Neron” (2016), “House of Quarantine” (2020), “Instant Karma” (2021), among others. “Woman in the Maze” is his seventh feature film.

SALA 2

15:00 Carne, a Pegada Insustentável - Hugo Almeida- 74’ (Port)- CENAS EVENTUALMENTE CHOCANTES – PCP- documentário, v.o.

It is not very common for Fantasporto to present documentaries. The quality and impact, I would even say necessity, of this film imposes its projection. In a world where everything is changing due to climate change and its dramatic impact on millions of human beings, director Hugo Almeida and his producer, Francisco Guerreiro, this European deputy, bring a historical and social review of the importance of the evolution of habits of food and the urgent need to change diet, especially in more advanced societies. This is the director's first feature film.

Hugo Almeida

Portuguese director, he was responsible for a series of 12 episodes of “UBI - a Path to Freedom” about Universal Basic Income. In 2022, he worked with the American band Hercules & Love Affair in the documentary “Continuity”. “ Carne: The Unsustainable Footprint” is his first documentary feature.

17:00 PCP – FILMS OUT OF COMPETITION Total: 122'

Our Path- Pedro Gil Vasconcelos- 35' (Port)- documentary, flight

The stories of History and the testimonies of those who agreed to walk more than 200 km to reach the holy city. Once again on his way to Santiago de Compostela, in Spain, in the Year of Jacobean and the pandemic, the director takes with him his friend, João Rebelo Martins, a well-known motorsport personality and promoter of several cultural events. Pedro Gil Vasconcelos has already been awarded numerous international awards for this film and his previous one. “O Meu Caminho”, (2022) was presented at Fantasporto in 2023 and collected an impressive set of awards, including “Best Short Film” at the Hollywood Gold Awards. This success is being repeated by this “Our Path”, already awarded as the Best Short Film in Milan and chosen as the Best Short by the Swedish Film Academy.

Era uma Vez no Apocalipse – Tiago Pimentel- 21’30’’, (Port)- sci-fi, horror, v.o

In a future time, but very close to us, a dictatorship persecutes citizens while the 3rd world war unfolds. In this nuclear winter, the Colonel visits an isolated house in search of the rebellious daughter of the old man who lives there. Director Tiago Pimentel is well-known at Fantasporto, having already presented the short “Encontro a Quatro” (2016) here. The film has a script by the director and António Manuel Pereira. An excellent role by musician Sérgio Godinho, in the protagonist, and by Mariana Pacheco and Paulo Calatré.

Titus - Rui Neto, Jorge Albuquerque - 65’ (Port) – tragédia, v.o.

It is not just a representation of one of Shakespeare's most cruel and bloody tragedies, “Titus Andronicus”, but a work of adaptation to current world themes. Titus is a general who returns from war with four prisoners who have sworn to take revenge. No one is safe. Titus' daughter is raped, his sons killed or expelled. But Titus goes even further in his own revenge. The film won awards in Argentina (Best Narrative Film at the Corrientes Festival), Germany (Film and Actress São José Correia at the Independent Star Film Fest), Peru (Best Drama at the Trujillo Festival) Chile (Best Film at CIFA) and Spain (Madrid Film Awards).

Rui Neto

Director, actor and artistic agent born in Lisbon, known for the TV series “Sol de Inverno” (2013) and “Ministério do Tempo” (2017). He directed the short film “A Curiosidade Matou o Gato” (2003). “Titus” (2022) is his first co-direction.

Jorge Albuquerque

Actor, musician and director born in Lisbon. He studied at the Escola Suoerior de Teatro e Cinema. He has worked at the Dona Maria National Theatre. And performed in the TV series “A Vida do Avesso” (2017), “Poderosas” (2015) and “Morangos com Açucar” (2003). “Titus” is his first co-direction.

19: 30 Goliath - Adilkhan Yerzhanov – 93' (Kazakhstan) - 2022 - Kazakhstan Retrospective | SR/OE- drasma, vo, leg ingl, leg. port

In the steppe of Kazakhstan, a surprising adaptation of Machiavelli and his theory about power and how to obtain it. This is the fight and revenge of a man, Arzu, whose wife was killed. The leader of criminals to whom everyone submits is faced with the wrath of this man, a disabled former soldier who will show him the strength of the weakest. A magnificent example of this country's emerging cinema and from a multi-award winning director. Venice Festival selection.

Adilkhan Yerzhanov

Born in 1982, director and screenwriter, he has won 13 international awards and is a regular at the Venice Festival where he has presented “Goliath” (2022) and “Yellow Cat” (2020). He is also known for “The Plague of Karatas Village” (2016), awarded at the Rotterdam Festival, and “A Dark, Dark Man” (2020), among others. His films are presented at major festivals such as San Sebastian, Cannes, Montréal, Tallinn or Venice.

21: 30 Carne, the Unsustainable Footprint- Hugo Almeida- 74' (Port)- EVENTUALLY SHOCKING SCENES. PCP- documentary, vo

It is not very common for Fantasporto to present documentaries. The quality and impact, I would even say necessity, of this film imposes its projection. In a world where everything is changing due to climate change and its dramatic impact on millions of human beings, director Hugo Almeida and his producer, Francisco Guerreiro, this European deputy, bring a historical and social review of the importance of the evolution of habits of food and the urgent need to change diet, especially in more advanced societies. This is the director's first feature film.

Hugo Almeida

Portuguese director, he was responsible for a series of 12 episodes of “UBI - a Path to Freedom” about Universal Basic Income. In 2022, he worked with the American band Hercules & Love Affair in the documentary “Continuity”. “Carne: A pegada Insustentável” is his first documentary feature.

23:30 The Well – Federico Zampaglione – 91’ – Italia- fal inglês CF- horror fantástico, v.o. ingl, leg. port

A young American who restores old paintings is called to a palace in a small town in Italy to deal with a painting darkened by a fire. But he soon realizes that there are many mysteries to unravel when a group of biologists with whom he had traveled disappear. Various monsters , heroines in difficulty and witches from the past make this film a tribute in the best tradition of “giallo” and classic fantasy. Sitges festival selection.

Federico Zampaglione

Director, musician and writer born in Rome in 1968, known for “Morrison” (2021) and “Tulpa: Demon of Desire” (2012).