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DEUS PERDOA, MAS EU NÃO
GOD FORGIVES, I DON'T
Pedro Neves
DOC, FIC, PRT
In the body lies the family that disappeared. Entire neighbourhoods that were demolished can be seen, knives, pistols, eyes that weep, hands gripping bars, handcuffs, a judge’s gavel, a machine gun, a knife, a joint, a broken heart, a bird flying towards freedom, the words “God forgives but I don’t” tattooed on the body. There are voices that were never heard and believe they have nothing to say. Voices that know darkness much better than light, and it is within it that they move best — in the invisibility of their days.
Pedro Neves is a Portuguese director and producer whose work bridges documentary and social inquiry. Born in Leiria, he studied in Porto and at the International Film and Television School of San Antonio de los Baños, Cuba. In 2008, he founded Red Desert, producing films screened on RTP, Canal+ and TVCine, and selected for over forty festivals, including Clermont-Ferrand, Doclisboa and CPH:DOX. His titles include “Os Esquecidos”, “Água Fria”, “Hospedaria”, “Acima das Nossas Possibilidades” and “Tarrafal”. “Sonhos de uma Revolução” (2023) and “Os Continuadores da Revolução” extend his reflection on history and change.
PORTO CIRCULAR
PORTO CIRCULAR
Vlad Petri
DOC, ROU, PRT
A lyrical journey through the city of Porto, where poetry and realism intertwine, carried by the city’s constant movement and living pulse.
Vlad Petri is a Romanian filmmaker, cinematographer, and producer whose work moves between documentary and fiction, exploring the intersection of personal record and collective memory. A graduate in Cinematography from the University of Theatre and Film in Bucharest and in Visual and Media Anthropology from Freie Universität Berlin, he approaches political and social themes with precision and empathy. His debut feature, “Where Are You, Bucharest?” (2014), premiered at Rotterdam, and “Between Revolutions” (2024) won the FIPRESCI Award at the Berlinale.
VIGÍLIA
VIGIL
Elena López Riera
DOC, FIC, CHE, ESP, PRT
In 2026, in Porto, a collective investigation unearths the legend of Henriqueta — a celebrated courtesan who, in 1867, kept the head of her dead lover — and follows her traces through archives and living memory, up to All Saints’ Night, when a vigil at the Prado do Repouso brings together sex workers and local women who still uphold the cult of this cannibal love.
Elena López Riera is a filmmaker and visual artist from Spain. Based in Switzerland since 2008, she teaches at the University of Geneva and the Haute École d’Art et Design. Her short films “Pueblo”, “Las vísceras” and “Los que desean” established her as a distinctive voice in European cinema. Her feature debut, “El agua” (2022), premiered at Directors’ Fortnight and earned a Goya nomination. In 2024, “Las Novias del Sur” received the Queer Palm in Cannes and awards from the French and Swiss academies.
