Arquiteturas Film Festival
Lisbon welcomes, from October 11 – 15, the 5th edition of the international show of documentary and experimental films on Architecture. Let’s Get Physical is the leitmotif of this edition and the festival’s director Sofia Mourato explains that: “Arquiteturas is a festival that introduces us to characters and stories, just like any other movie festival, but these have the original trait of being predominantly made of brick, stone, concrete, streets, neighborhoods and cities. The discourse of Arquiteturas is the following: to edify, movie after movie, individual after individual, story after story, an event that mirrors the condition of the individual and global human living experiences. The subjects of each edition are the underlying theme to unleash synergies between disciplines, discuss contemporary outlooks and reflect on our place as citizens.”
Between Fórum Lisboa and Cinema City Alvalade, the festival presents a programme with more than 20 national and 2 international premieres, with the intent to invite the viewer to “reflect on the illustrious and frail complexity of this profession, one that most of us is not aware”, as put by the director.
This year, the highlight of the official programme goes to the premiere of REM: Rem Koolhaas (90’, 2016), a documentary endowed with a quite personal narrative on this renowned architect. Partially produced due to a crowdfunded format, it is directed by Tomas Koolhaas, Rem’s son, having been considered by the Hollywood Reporter as “An act of love from a son to his father, as well as a highly absorbing documentary on Architecture”. In addition to Koolhaas, Arquiteturas also pays tribute to three other major stars of Architecture: the Danish Bjarke Ingels with the screening of Big Time (94’, 2017), the insurmountable Álvaro Siza with Vizinhos (an edited version for theaters, 155’, 2016) and the American activist Jane Jacobs with Citizen Jane: Battle for the City (92’, 2016).
In competition, and divided into the categories “International Competition”, “Experimental” and “New Talents”, there will be more than 20 movies from 14 different countries. The audience will have the opportunity to know several directors who have been invited to present their endeavours for the very first time in Portugal. The two world premieres from Dutch authors must also be emphasized: the short film Today, of Marcel Ijzerman (4’, 2016) and Hands On – A Journey through Design and Craftsman with Emmanuel Babled, of Marco Sweering (32’, 2017).
The programme of Arquiteturas also includes a masterclass with the German director and video-artist Daniel Kötter, which will take place at the headquarters of Trienal de Lisboa, Friday, October 13th, at 5 pm (free admission). Architecture and the city have been a recurrent subject in Kötter’s work, in which he intentionally uses different means, combining techniques of structural film with documentary elements and experimental music, having been exhibited in several galleries, video festivals, concert halls and theatres all over the world. He won the prize for the Best Experimental Movie, in the 2015 edition of Arquiteturas and, this year, he is back with the movie Hashti Tehran (2017), which will be screened on October 15th, at Fórum Lisboa.
For the first time the festival is co-produced by Trienal de Lisboa and Do You Mean Arquitecture, with Sofia Morato as artistic director, Arquiteturas inaugurates an area devoted to the cinema in the official programme of Trienal, and José Mateus, President of Trienal de Lisboa, affirms that: “The countless connections between cinema and Architecture, in terms of form or content, or when it comes to the methodology applied to the conception of narratives or spaces, have always been a subject capable of prompting fascination and reflection in directors and architectures. The work of many architects finds inspiration in the art of cinema, and the latter often finds has in architecture a pivotal or decisive reality, border crossings in which the theoretical framework of both fields are amplified and densified. Therefore, given that Trienal has been diversifying their spheres over its 10-year span, now is the right time to also incorporate the cinema, particularly through this festival that has been consubstantiating its worth with years of excellent programming. The fact that concepts of programming are often born in Trienal’s structure itself is something that justifies our 1st ‘joint venture’ ever”.
So, is it assumed that this is the key edition to ensure that the festival acquires a dimensional trait? Sofia Mourato replies that “in the festival’s fifth year, it’s hard to avoid celebrating all those opportunities that I personally have had to learn that the function of the architect, and the field of architecture itself, transcends the role assigned to it. The co-organization with Trienal is a deeply important union for us, after several years of courtship, one that will certainly offer the specialized audience an opportunity to be closely acquainted, through the screen, the professionals they admire, and the public in general will be surprised by an unexpected proximity with the presented subjects.”
TICKET INFO:
Fórum Pass:
25€ (only for the sessions at Fórum Lisboa)
Single Ticket:
Fórum Lisboa – 3,50€
Cinema City Alvalade – 5,00€
Discount Ticket (teenagers, students, unemployed, seniors, groups of more than 10 people):
Fórum Lisboa – 3,00€
Cinema City Alvalade – 4,50€
Pass and Tickets on sale at Ticketline and screening venues.