This story unveils the imaginary and mythology of the St. Michael island community, the azorian and portuguese society forever transformed by the events that took place between 1974 and 1975. The universe
of Cinema is known for challenging the collective consciousness over time, and so, in its own way, this film intends to do exactly that by inviting several generations to explore this story together and by doing so restoring to this period the value and curiosity it deserves in our history and time.

 

The imagery this film is build on rests over a joyful, rebellious, innocent, often adventurous, complicit and passionate mood, while suggesting an alternative to the commonly depicted melancholy so often associated with living on the islands.

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On the other hand, by the reunion of the protagonists 30 years later, Ponta Delgada’s context is that of its time in the world. A normal city, like so many other medium-sized portuguese cities but with it's own singular island dimension and social microcosmos.

Cristina, a character who returns to the island, is an artist who comes to exhibit at the invitation of a gallery, an invitation from a community of her time that claims the contemporaneity it deserves. Guilherme, the one who dreamed as big but remained behind, feels unexpectedly confronted by his past and his dormant desires, like so many do.

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This moment of reunion raises universal existentialist questions, natural to this age group, whether living in the countryside or in the city, in a country or another. What makes it special is the fact it is being told from the Azores, on one of the nine small resilient islands in the middle of the huge Atlantic Ocean.

And how do you tell such a story through cinema?

Beyond narrative choices, our response from a technical point of view lies in the approaches of both the camera and the film montage, not forgetting an actor’s or actress’s work done in a realistic/naturalistic manner. An accomplishment done by taking advantage of an irreverent or creative camera style when need be, or a more conventional one when a clear understanding of the narrative is necessary. But above all by standing by and believing in a team of highly motivated and competent actors and crew, while knowing this story will finally and proudly be told to the world by all of us.