VENICE 2012 Portugal
Valeria Sarmiento and Manoel de Oliveira at the Mostra
by Vitor Pinto
26/07/2012 - Valeria Sarmiento’s Lines of Wellington [trailer, film focus] and Manoel de Oliveira’s O Gebo e a Sombra [trailer] have been selected for the
Films vying for the Golden Lion include Lines of Wellington, a Portuguese-French production from Paulo Branco set in the 19th century during the French invasion of Portugal. Ruiz’ wife, Sarmiento, completed filming the project on the death of her husband last summer (see more). The cast is made up of French stars Catherine Deneuve, Michel Piccoli, Mathieu Amalric; US star John Malkovich; Spanish actress Marisa Paredes; Potuguese stars Nuno Lopes, Carlotto Cota, Albano Jerónimo, Soraia Chaves and Maria João Bastos, along with 5,000 actors.
Meanwhile, de Oliveira’s O Gebo e a Sombra will screen out of competition. Produced by Luís Urbano for O Som e a Fúria in co-production with France, O Gebo e a Sombra is an adaptation of a play by Portuguese writer Raúl Brandão. The cast features veteran stars who despite their experience are making their first appearance in the unusual film universe of the 103 year-old: Michael Lonsdale, Claudia Cardinale and Jeanne Moreau, along with the usual Portuguese collaborators Luís Miguel Cintra, Ricardo Trêpa and Leonor Silveira.
