Introduction to Portuguese Cinema
Portuguese filmmakers are making a name for themselves on the international scene, and according to Fabio Martins, programmer for the Tribeca Festival Lisboa, it’s not because they’re imitating popular trends in global cinema. Instead, Martins believes that originality and emotional truth are key to their success. "Nowadays, audiences everywhere are drawn to authenticity, to voices that don’t conform, to an aesthetic that feels honest. Portuguese cinema has that in its DNA," he says.
The Tribeca Festival Lisboa
The Tribeca Festival Lisboa, which takes place from October 29th to November 1st in Lisbon, is a platform that showcases the best of Portuguese cinema. Martins leads a team that curates content for the festival, which includes film, television, podcasts, lectures, and other platforms. He argues that the festival is well-positioned to build bridges between artists and audiences, and that it’s not about seeking validation from elsewhere, but about creating a conversation that says Portuguese cinema matters.
Featured Films
Some of the Portuguese titles featured at the Tribeca Festival Lisboa include "agree" by director Duarte Neves, which explores the theme of connection in times of isolation. Another film, "The memory of the smell of things" by Antonio Ferreira, tells the story of a colonial war veteran who confronts his past when he’s cared for by a black nurse in a nursing home. Martins praises the film, saying it has "the emotional precision of a confession and the courage of social criticism."
Honoring Portuguese History
The festival will also feature "Beyond the Horizon – The Crossroads" by Fernando Vendrell, which commemorates the early 20th-century Portuguese aeronauts Sacadura Cabral and Gago Coutinho, who were the first aviators to cross the Atlantic in a single leg. Martins says the film takes up a legendary moment in Portuguese history as a metaphor for courage and imagination.
A New Wave of Portuguese Directors
The Tribeca Festival Lisboa’s local film program reflects a mix of emerging and established Portuguese directors who combine experience with experimentation. Martins notes that younger directors like Duarte Neves are bringing a new energy to Portuguese cinema, while established directors like Antonio Ferreira are flying the flag of fierce indie filmmakers. Meanwhile, experienced directors like Fernando Vendrell are representing a crucial bridge between Portuguese cinema and television.
Evolving Portuguese Cinema
Martins argues that today’s Portuguese filmmakers are less concerned with aesthetic schools and more with emotional truth. They’re exploring identity, belonging, gender, and digital loneliness from a deeply personal perspective, but with a visual sophistication inherited from previous masters like Manoel de Oliveira, Pedro Costa, and Miguel Gomes. "In this sense, the new wave of Portuguese directors seeks not to imitate, but to broaden the conversation," he says.
Responding to a World in Crisis
Emerging Portuguese filmmakers are following a long tradition of responding politically while looking inward for emotional truth and inspiration. Martins notes that Portugal has a long tradition of using cinema to process instability, but what’s fascinating today is how filmmakers have turned that look inward. Instead of staging overtly political narratives, many are focusing on the subtler effects of power, inequality, and division in everyday life. "These are political films, but their politics arise from empathy, not ideology. They reflect a society learning to deal with complexity, where hope and doubt coexist," he says.
