« Spain-Portugal”, this is the theme of the 34e Pessac Historical Film Festival, around sixty films and debates between November 19 and 24 at the Jean-Eustache cinema. Added to this are three competitions and several special screenings, including 34 documentaries or fiction films. An intense program detailed by François Aymé, general commissioner of the festival.
Choosing Spain and Portugal, was it obvious as we celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the Carnation Revolution and prepare to celebrate the death of Franco?
Indeed, this double commemoration has a strong political meaning in a context where Hungary, Italy and now the United States have shifted towards very authoritarian governments. It seemed good to us to remember that fifty years ago we were going in the opposite direction in Portugal and Spain.
And then, talking about these two countries allows us to talk about the great discoveries in Africa and South America, the establishment of slavery, and, previously, Al-Andalus, this Iberian peninsula under Muslim domination. We have great geographical, economic and emotional proximity with these two countries, yet we know little about their histories and their cinemas.
Specifically, Spanish and Portuguese cinemas are much less known than those of Italy or the United States. Didn’t that pose any problems for you in developing the programming?
Yes. Especially since there are many fewer great classics in these cinematographies, since they remained underdeveloped until the 1960s, due to lack of economic means, and since they were subject to censorship for a long time, which makes it difficult when looking for historical films.
Our selection is firstly based on themes: the first colonizations, Al-Andalus, the Spanish Civil War, the Carnation Revolution… Or, more recently, the economic crisis of 2008, feminism, the still painful memory of Francoism. Eighty-five years after the end of the Spanish Civil War, bodies of victims are still being discovered. This is what “The Silence of Others” is about, which will be screened on Thursday, November 21. Ultimately, this selection will allow us to see films that we do not see elsewhere: neither in theaters, nor on television, nor on platforms.
“This selection will allow us to see films that we do not see elsewhere: neither in theaters, nor on television, nor on platforms”
Maria de Medeiros will present her film “Captains of April” and she will participate on Thursday, November 21 in a major oral Sciences Po/“Sud Ouest” in addition to chairing the student jury. For you, is this the most representative personality of Portuguese cinema in 2024?
He is a striking personality. “Captains of April” refers to the Carnation Revolution and the very joyful state of mind that accompanied it. She will present it both in public session and in school session. And as an actress, her filmography is rich (notably “Pulp Fiction” by Quentin Tarantino or “Pasolini” by Abel Ferrara, Editor’s note).
But among the personalities of Portuguese cinema, we also welcome Paulo Branco, whose career as a producer was very extensive in the 1990s and 2000s. We are screening four films that he produced, including “Mysteries of Lisbon” and “Les Lignes of Wellington.
Diasporas, overtourism, the figure of Goya: many of the debates you propose have a strong resonance in Gironde…
…And throughout New Aquitaine. The Spanish and Portuguese communities are very present in the region. Sociologist Manuel Dias is expected to speak in particular about the symbolic and emotional dimension attached to Hendaye and Bordeaux stations for immigrants, during a debate scheduled for Saturday, November 23.
“I’m still here”, by Walter Salles: the disappearance of a deputy during the dictatorship in Brazil, told from the point of view of his wife.
Arte France
“Ay Carmela!” », “Olympe, a woman in the Revolution”, “Sarah Bernhardt, the divine”: films on the destinies of women seem to be on the rise in Pessac…
This is an effect of the #MeToo movement. The production of films in the form of portraits of women is important today. Finally ! It’s still incredible that Olympe de Gouges has not inspired any fiction film so far even though she is an important personality in the history of feminism. Same thing for Sarah Bernhardt, who is one of the big names in French theater.
On this type of subject, we can also cite “I’m still here”, a film about the disappearance of a Brazilian deputy after his arrest by the military police in 1971, and which does so from the point of view of his marry. She lives an endless ordeal not knowing if her husband is dead or not, and if he is dead, where his body is. A disappearance is worse than an execution: loved ones cannot mourn.
Detailed programming on cinema-histoire-pessac.com
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