Between 5th and 7th January 2024, the IPO Lisbon 100 Years Film Showcase took place, one of the initiatives celebrating the centenary of this institution of reference in the study, treatment and research of cancer.
In six full and emotional sessions, we presented the community with a new perspective, thanks to the framework provided by the introductions, made by IPO Lisboa professionals who deal with cancer on a daily basis, providing new clues for us to see and feel the films in a different light.
The talk- moderated by Joana Cruz (radio host) and with the participation of Paula Chaves (representative of the Portuguese League Against Cancer), Nuno Artur Silva (former Secretary of State for Culture and founder of Produções Fictícias) and Rui Miguel Ribeiro (editor of Edições do Saguão and poet) – was another distinctive moment of this film showcase. Claire Simon’s Our body was the starting point for an enriching conversation, with hopeful testimony from those who have lived and are living with the disease.
Over the course of three days, São Jorge Cinema was the stage for a showcase of films that stirred our feelings, whether slightly or abruptly, but definitely left no-one indifferent.
From IndieLisboa’s point of view, this was a great challenge that we are proud to have taken part in. We were asked to think about cinema in a way that we haven’t been used to for 20 years, and that is to programme contemporary cinema in a festival context. For the IPO Lisbon 100 Years Film Showcase we had to leave our comfort zone, without losing our essence, in search of cinema with an underlying theme that related not only to cancer but also to the work carried out by the Portuguese Oncology Institute of Lisbon Francisco Gentil. It was a demanding but rewarding process.
Photography © Raquel Montez
