si destinu, by vanessa fernandes

Si Destinu (2015), by Vanessa Fernandes, follows the story of Awa, an adolescent living in Lisbon with her father, Abdul. The young woman’s struggle unfolds under the influence exerted upon Abdul by his paternal family back in Guinea-Bissau, leading Awa’s future to be conditioned by norms and traditions inherited from her parents’ homeland. More than a film about female genital mutilation, it is a reflection on the persistence of invisible powers and silent laws that traverse borders and perpetuate themselves within the intimacy of family relations.

After the screening of this film, curator and cultural critic Kitty Furtado talks with director Vanessa Fernandes about the themes portrayed in it. Built around themes such as Between-Place, Memory and Ancestry, Ecology and Feminism, Anti-racism and Family, this conversation seeks to reflect, from the film Si Destinu and the director’s work, on the variants that constitute the Black Gaze, in Portugal and around the world.

curated by kitty furtado
conversation with kitty furtado and vanessa fernandes

supported by portuguese republic – culture, youth and sports / general direction of the arts / network of portuguese theaters and cinemas (rtcp). portuguese contemporary art network (rpac).