Trindade: six years enjoying good cinema in the center of Porto

Cinema Trindade celebrates another anniversary – the sixth – from this Sunday until the next 16th.

Six years later, cinephiles in the Porto region may well wonder what their lives would be like without Cinema Trindade. Until recently, with the reopening of Batalha, Trindade was an authentic island of quality films, in a city where even the multiplexes, where auteur cinema is necessarily less important than the so-called commercial cinema, have moved to the peripheries.

Marking its sixth anniversary, this two-screen space, which has shown dozens and dozens of films over time, some of the best released in our country, and has hosted countless debates with directors, producers and other guests, organizes a program that extends from today until the next 16th. Two symbolic dates, since it was on the 5th of February 2016 that the renovated space was inaugurated, but the start of the regular program would only take place eleven days later.

The program includes the Expectativa 23 section, with a daily preview of some of the best films that will be screened until spring, Portugal Cinema, an axis dedicated to Portuguese cinema that includes Made in Porto, a programming arm that aims to give voice and visibility to the cinema made in the city, a focus on two directors, the Portuguese Cláudia Varejão and the Argentine Lucrécia Martel, with the author’s first three films presented in restored digital copies and the É Tudo Brasil program, which proposes the recovery of films unique alongside new titles.

It is an authentic festival: 31 films shown in 12 days of programming, a world premiere, 11 national premieres and the presence of 11 guests, including directors, producers and actors.

This Sunday, opening day, we will have “Morada”, by Eva Ângelo (2:30 pm), a film with scenes shot at Cinema Trindade itself and which will count on the presence of the director; “What Words Can Do”, about the authors of “Novas Cartas Portuguesas”, with the presence of directors Luísa Sequeira and Luísa Marinho (16:30); “Porto”, by Gabe Klinger, with the presence of the film’s producer, Rodrigo Areias (6:30 pm); the world premiere of “Letrux: Viver é um Frenesi”, by Marcio Debelian (8:00 pm); and the premiere of what will surely be one of the best films to be released this year, “EO”, by the Polish Jerzy Skolimovski (21:30).

The program of national premieres also includes, to see now until the 16th, if the Porto cinephile wants to save time, “Tori and Lokita”, by Jea-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, “As Beasts”, by Rodrigo Sorogoyen, “Quero Falar Sobre Marguerite Duras” by Claire Simon, “Nostalgia” by Mario Martone, “Holy Spider” by Ali Abassi, “Underneath the Fig Trees” by Erige Sehiri, “Saint Omer” by Alice Diop, “Somebody’s Gonna Love Somebody “, byHadas Ben Aroya, “Os Piores”, by Lise Akoka and Romane Gueret, “A Água”, by Elena López Riera and “Pacifiction”, by Albert Serra.

Under the heading Portugal + Made in Porto, in addition to today’s films, the long-awaited “Great Yarmouth: Provisional Figures”, by Marco Martins, and “Nação Valente”, by Carlos Conceição, can also be seen in preview. From Cláudia Varejão, in addition to the most recent film, “Wolf and Dog”, we will also see “Ama-San” and “Amor Fati”, while from Lucrecia Martel, you will be able to see the inaugural titles of the Argentine and true cult films, “The Pântano”, “The Holy Girl” and “The Headless Woman”.

Finally, the É Tudo Brasil program presents some gems from the cinema of our sister country, including some prize winners at the prestigious Festival do Gramado. As is the case with the absolutely unmissable “Alien Nights”, last August winner of six awards in the 50th edition of the historic festival. Entirely shot in the Amazon by Sérgio Carvalho and featuring Chico Diaz in one of the protagonists, the film follows the journey of three young people from the periphery, in a tragic context but according to an approach of fantastic realism. Also not to be missed is the projection of the new copy of the gigantic “Deus e o Diabo na Terra do Sol”, which begins a cycle on Glauber Rocha to take place over the months of February and March.