Jack is Joaquim Calçada, a former aircraft mechanic. Before the Carnation Revolution, he emigrated to New York, where he became a taxi driver. He returns, as Carmen Miranda sang, “Americanized”, after twenty years. It’s in Alhandra, Vila Franca de Xira, that, one step away from retirement, he tells stories of his time in the United States and of a journey guided by his survival instinct.
Jack, or rather Joaquim Calçada, is an anti-hero. And he is part of an interesting gallery of people the director met in the Novas Oportunidades program. Joaquim emigrated to the United States, took a taxi in New York and lived those stories that could belong to the cinema, but without being filmed, would remain forever anonymous. In Jack’s Ride, he is the full-fledged protagonist, a good-hearted rascal who believes in fair things (even though he has his own understanding of justice) and Susana Nobre leads him to stardom. Jack is now a rising star, whether on a makeshift stage or in life. The image’s vibrant colours and grain show that the heart beats strongly, whether that of the protagonist or that of the director, who from film to film grows in boldness, in virtuosity and in hope. Last note for Jack’s hairstyle – the best in all Portuguese cinema. (Miguel Valverde)
Susana Nobre was born in Lisbon in 1974. In 1998 she received a B.A. in Communication Sciences from Lisbon’s Nova University. Since then she started to make films that have been shown in several festivals, such as Cannes or Rotterdam. In 2006 she became a member of the production company Terratreme (formerly Raiva), where she has been working as an executive producer in several projects. During the present year, she will be preparing the feature film Rabat City.
