SUSANA DE SOUSA DIAS AT ARSENAL

25.04.2023 / 19:00 – 23:00

Susana de Sousa Dias continually grapples with the legacy of fascism in Portugal in her cinematic oeuvre. The tile of her documentary 48 refers to the 48 years which the Salazar dictatorship lasted (1926–1974). It consists of official photographs taken by the PIDE secret police that show the faces of political prisoners, while the opponents of the regime seen in the images are heard in voiceover speaking today about imprisonment, humiliation and torture. Editing together archive images and witness testimonies, this minimalist concept which makes an important contribution to collective memory. 

As Director’s choice, Susana de Sousa Dias pairs her own film with António de Macedo’s DOMINGO À TARDE, a milestone of Novo Cinema that defied the state censors: a doctor wants to save a terminally ill patient who he’s fallen in love with – a reflection on life in the presence of death.

48 (Portugal, 2009 / 93 min. / Original version with English subtitles)
DOMINGO À TARDE  (Portugal, 1965 / 93 min. /Original version with English subtitles)

Followed by a talk with Susana de Sousa Dias

Arsenal – Institut für Film und Videokunst e.V., Potsdamer Straße 2, 10785 Berlin

Funded by the Senate Department for Culture and Europe, Open Sector Funding, Festivals and Series. With the support of the DAAD Artists-in-Berlin Program.

Susana de Sousa Dias is currently a fellow of the DAAD Artists-in-Berlin Program.