Cinema Cycle ROOTS 4: Contos do Esquecimento (2023)
de Dulce Fernandes
Date: November 29 at 7 p.m.
Location: Auditorium of the 21st Century Town Hall Building, Lagos City Council
Duration: 127 min.
Free admission upon mandatory registration here.
Synopsis
Contos do Esquecimento (Tales of Oblivion) takes us on a journey through historical events, brought to light by recent archaeological excavations in Lagos, Portugal. What is discovered belongs to the past of slavery, revealing Portugal’s role in the transatlantic slave trade. A 15th-century rubbish dump, and all the details that emerge from the enumeration of the collected remains, inform us and tell us more and more. The timing of the images, the soundscape, and the narration set a pace that guides our gaze and perception in a sensitive discovery that delves into various media, texts, illustrations, scattered materials, and careful descriptions. Between the present and the past, a cross-temporal game is established, where we are placed at the center of this remembered and projected memory. It is also a pretext for a reflection on time, the mark of death, and the inexorable disappearance. We must remember, we must not forget.
