Gloria is an independent Portuguese

Portugal

Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

 drama film directed

Film director

A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...

 by Manuela Viegas

Manuela Viegas

Manuela Viegas is a Portuguese film editor and director.An influential film editor since the 70's, has edited dozens of films...

, produced at Portuguese independent production company Rosa Filmes

Rosa Filmes

Rosa Filmes is a Portuguese independent motion picture production and distribution company.Founded by Joaquim Sapinho in 1993, Rosa Filmes has produced until now:...

.

The poster of the film was designed by Portuguese artist Julião Sarmento

Julião Sarmento

Julião Sarmento is a Portuguese multimedia artist and painter.He was born in Lisbon , studied painting and architecture at the Lisbon School of Fine Arts...

.

Reception

Gloria was part of the official competition of the 1999 Berlin International Film Festival

Berlin International Film Festival

The Berlin International Film Festival , also called the Berlinale, is one of the world's leading film festivals and most reputable media events. It is held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in West Berlin in 1951, the festival has been celebrated annually in February since 1978...

, being the only Portuguese film to ever do so until today.

Production

The film was the directorial debut of the director Manuela Viegas. Written by her and Joaquim Sapinho

Joaquim Sapinho

Joaquim Sapinho is a Portuguese film director. He is also the founder of Rosa Filmes. He was born in Sabugal, Portugal.-Career:Joaquim Sapinho was a student at the Portuguese National Film School, where he is nowadays a professor of directing for cinema.He started as a documentarist for...

, the film was produced at Rosa Filmes simultaneously with The Policewoman

The Policewoman

The Policewoman is an independent Portuguese drama film directed by Joaquim Sapinho, produced at Rosa Filmes.- Reception :The film had its world premiere in 2003, at the Berlin International Film Festival. Was part of the oficial selection of inumerous film festivals, like the Edinburgh Film...

, which, directed by Sapinho, was also edited by Viegas. The two films share a common aesthetic, theme, and interconected references, preserving, however, the different voice of each director. The result were two films that are like the two sides of a same coin, Gloria a more feminine, in opposition to The Policewoman, which is more masculine.

Plot

Gloria is set against the backdrop of a rural landscape slowly disappearing in modern Portugal. The small border town of Vila de Santiago, once a booming trade center for illegal trafficking, is about to become a ghost town, as a new motorway is to bypass the city and the railway station is being closed. Its stationmaster, Vincente, is preparing to retire. Many young people have moved out, leaving the children to be brought up by the elderly, including thirteen-year-old Glória and her friend Ivan. Glória's life suddenly changes with the arrival of Vincente's son, Mauro, who has just come out of prison and has some old issues to settle. Mauro begins to charge around the station on his motorbike, while Glória's friendship with Ivan is put to test on account of her attraction to older Mauro.

Cast

• Jean-Christophe Bouvet as Vicente
• Raquel Marques as Glória
• Francisco Relvas as Ivan
• Ricardo Aibéo as Mauro
• Paula Só as Noémia
• Isabel de Castro as Teresa

External links

• Gloria official page at Rosa Filmes web site (click on "ENG", then on "ABOUT US", then on "FILMS", then on "GLORIA")
• Gloria at IMDb