DIRECTOR'S STATEMENT​

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Everything I know about life I’ve learnt it through cinema and art. I’ve been working in the industry for almost ten years and, finally, in December 2019, after finishing a long night shoot, I returned to unemployment and decided to write a film. I was unsettled by the idea of belonging. My first feature had to reflect on that and on my condition as a precarious but passionate freelancer. I was interested in capturing the experience of making a film, its dynamics, and tribulations. Eternal Flame it’s a story about a young man drifting through life, daydreaming of making films, it’s about fellowship, small tragedies and comedies of everyday life, it’s about the construction of a shot, more than the shot itself. Set in Lisbon, my city, I filmed my friends and colleagues. Is a tribute to the great family of Portuguese cinema – from technicians to actors, from interns to producers. João, just like me, lives life 

through cinema, where reality and fiction go hand in hand. You will see a camera talk.