Vai no Batalha, Pedro Lino's film about the Porto cinema and its history is the opening film of Porto/Post/Doc. In its world premiere, the film will be screened in the main room of Batalha Centro de Cinema on 17 November at 21h15. 

Part of the Cinemas Mythiques series on iconic cinemas, Vai no Batalha revisits the imagery and history associated with Porto’s century-old cinema. The film compiles footage of the entire process of the building’s restoration, as well as never-before-revealed archive images of the theatre, its founders, and other protagonists, including Manoel de Oliveira, Artur de Andrade, Júlio Pomar, Henrique Alves Costa and Alexandre Alves Costa. 

Through an innovative mixture of contemporary footage, films made throughout the 20th century, 2D and 3D animation clips and images from archival documents, this film takes us on a journey through Porto and Portugal’s history, linking events through the city and country’s cinema, alongside the personal stories of the Neves Real family and architect Alexandre Alves Costa – who is also one of the film's narrators.