Vicente was unique in his genuine way of being and of being with us. During the festival, at the entrance of the theatre, in a hurry between two unavoidable commitments, working and always happy, here is Vicente in a singular way of walking and talking, always in two simultaneous worlds but present and gentle as few. «Do you remember...?» The speed of thought and remembrance (in itself unforgettable) sometimes obstruct the clarity of words. But what does it matter? The disquiet of the body is the disquiet of the spirit, permanently curious, inexpressibly generous. Vicente left, we lost a friend, and the city lost too. Porto/Post/Doc lost a collaborator who shared – with each and every one – his wisdom, his joy and his affection since the first edition.
When, in 2014, we invited Vicente to accompany the jury of the International Competition, we already knew that we could count on him not only to carry out this task professionally – which he fulfilled with the wisdom of a truly master of ceremonies – but also to contribute with his personal qualities so that the festival would grow year after year, without forgetting the hours of party that he animated with his records. His genuine friendship for others made the national and international guests who visited us, throughout six editions, carry him in their hearts, and with him, the festival too. That is why, at this particularly difficult moment, we could not fail to stood up for Vicente as Vicente did for Porto/Post/Doc.
Now that the cinema theaters are going to reopen, after the strange period we have experienced, Porto has lost more than one spectator, a cinephile, a melomaniac, who has never been confined of cinema. By borrowing Herberto Helder's loan to the greeks, we answered the poet's question in advance: for people, for music, for cinema, yes, Vicente had passion.
We will remember him forever, in the conviction that new entries will be added to his list of films.
"I read somewhere that the ancient Greeks did not write necrology,
when someone died they just asked:
did you have a passion?"
Herberto Helder
A hug,
from the team