The Portugal Film Commission took part in the 5th Audiovisual Ideas Market at the São Paulo International Film Festival, which took place from October 22 to 25 at the Cinemateca Brasileira. The event gathered 1.600 accredited participants, hosted around 75 activities, and welcomed over 5.000 attendees.
The programme included a networking coffee hosted by the Portugal Film Commission which, together with several one-on-one meetings held over the four days, helped strengthen the goal of fostering partnerships and co-productions with the Brazilian market and other international participants. This year’s edition also highlighted Ibero-American animation, with debates on the future of independent animation and the participation of Portuguese producers such as David Doutel and Vasco Sá.
In total, the festival screened 28 Portuguese films in various sessions and time slots, including animated films featured in the second edition of Mostrinha, the section dedicated to young audiences. Considered the largest festival in Latin America, the event also received support from the Consulate General of Portugal in São Paulo for the screening of Portuguese films and co-productions, demonstrating its commitment to promoting Portuguese culture through cinema.
The 49th edition also featured artwork by writer and visual artist Valter Hugo Mãe, author of this year’s festival poster. The invitation followed the screening of the biographical documentary De Lugar Nenhum, by Miguel Gonçalves Mendes, and coincided with the world premiere of The Son of a Thousand Men, adapted from Mãe’s novel and directed by Daniel Rezende. Produced by Biônica Films in co-production with Barry Company, the film will be distributed by Netflix, with a global premiere (including in Portugal) scheduled for November 7.
For the fifth consecutive year, the Audiovisual Ideas Market has established itself as one of the main spaces for discussion and networking in the audiovisual sector. The São Paulo International Film Festival thus reaffirms its role as a key platform for dialogue, professional development, and opportunity creation in the film industry – in a São Paulo recently recognised by UNESCO as a Creative City of Film.
Photos: Camila Cordeiro
