Pedro Costa

For more than 30 years, Pedro Costa, born in 1958, has carved out a solid reputation in the world of cinema. He is one of the most visible figures at film festivals, although he is not universally praised: his austere, drawn-out works have little chance of seducing fans of Hollywood blockbusters. His first setting was the Fontainhas district, home to Lisbon’s Cape Verdeans, locked in a cycle of poverty and drug addiction. It was there that he pursued his long-time obsession with Vanda, with the apparent attitude of a rigorous documentary filmmaker, but with flashes of light that contradict the rules of the strict rendering of reality. Alone in his niche, he tirelessly crafts an oeuvre that seeks no frame of reference and has no need for prestigious sponsors. A true auteur.

In collaboration with CINEMATEK