Technical information
Original title: A savana e a montanha
Spanish title: La sabana y la montaña
Running time: 77 min
Genre: Hybrid documentary
Original format: DCP
Origin: Portugal, Uruguay
Synopsis
The community of Covas do Barroso, in northern Portugal, discovers that the British company Savannah Resources plans to build the largest open-pit lithium mine in Europe just few meters from their homes. Confronted by this imminent threat, the People decide to organize themselves and expel the company from their lands.
Director’s note
Covas do Barroso is a village near Bostofrio, where my father was born and where I made my first film, Bostofrio, où le ciel rejoint la terre. This geographical and emotional proximity led me to stay attentive to the news since 2018 regarding unclear business dealings aimed at the eventual development of a mining operation in the region, by Savannah Resources, a multinational listed on the London Stock Exchange. To understand the characteristics of a mining operation with the potential to irreversibly alter a mountainous landscape of over 500 hectares, I spoke with geographers, architects, engineers, and, of course, with the people who survive there. It was mainly for the people and the ancestral activities that flourish in Covas do Barroso that I decided to join the fight to defend this way of life. Cinema has a responsibility of involvement that I cannot escape. In my films, I seek to stand alongside people, without being guided by economic or speculative policies of those who do not know or live in the territory.
Crew
Direction: Paulo Carneiro
Screenplay: Paulo Carneiro and Alex Piperno
Production houses: Bam Bam Cinema (Pt), La Pobladora Cine (Uy)
Production: Paulo Carneiro, Alex Piperno
Cinematography: Duarte Domingos
Editing: Magdalena Schinca, Paulo Carneiro, Alex Piperno
Direct sound: Ricardo Leal
Sound Design and Mixing: Daniel Yafalián
Music: Carlos Libo, Diego Placeres
Title Design: Luciano Scherer
VFX Supervision: Gridboy, Mariana Franco
Color and Deliveries: Juan Álvarez Neme
Sales agent: Portugal Film
Cast
Carlos Libo
Paulo Sanchez
Daniel Loureiro
Aida Fernandes
Supports
Lisbon Screenings – IndieLisboa
Arché DocLisboa (RTP Award – Best film WIP)
Mostra de València Mediterranean Coproduction Forum 2022
Programa Uruguay Audiovisual – Producciones Nacionales
ICAU Posicionamiento internacional
Festivals
[2024] Quinzaine des Cinéastes [France]
[2024] MDOC – Festival Internacional de Documentário de Melgaço (Special Mention – Best Portuguese Documentary) [Portugal]
[2024] PYIFF – Pingyao Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon International Film Festival [China]
[2024] Filmfest Hamburg [Germany]
[2024] FIDBA – Festival Internacional de Cine Documental de Buenos Aires [Argentina]
[2024] Athens International Film Festival [Greece]
[2024] Lima Alterna International Film Festival (Ibero-Americana Competition Award) [Peru]
[2024] Film Festival Diritti Umani Lugano [Switzerland]
[2024] Refocus Film Festival [USA]
[2024] Bergen International Film Festival [Norway]
[2024] São Paulo International Film Festival [Brazil]
[2024] SEMINCI – Valladolid International Film Festival (Jury Honorable Mention) [Spain]
[2024] Astra Film Festival [Romania]
[2024] Directors’ Fortnight: Los Angeles [USA]
[2024] Golden Rooster Awards Film Festival [China]
[2024] CINEUROPA Festival – Santiago de Compostela [Spain]
[2024] Laceno d’Oro (Special Mention)[Italy]
[2024] Karama Human Rights Film Festival [Jordan]
[2024] Iran International Documentary Film Festival “Cinema Verite” [Iran]
[2024] Nepal Human Rights International Film Festival [Nepal]
[2025] Ajanta-Ellora International Film Festival (Audience Award) [India]
[2025] Festival Écrans Urbains [Switzerland]
[2025] IBIZACINEFEST – Ibiza Independent Film [Spain]
[2025] MICE – Mostra Internacional de Cinema [Spain]
[2025] Films of Resistance [UK]
[2025] CATAPA’s Right to Say No [Belgium]
[2025] Panorama Internacional Coisa de Cinema [Brazil]
[2025] International Festival of Science Documentary [Czech Republic]
[2025] Trento Film Festival [Italy]
[2025] International Golden Safron Film Festival [Turkey]
[2025] Beldocs International Documentary Film Festival [Serbia]
[2025] Guadalajara International Film Festival [Mexico]
[2025] Mostra de Cinema Português em Macau [Macao]
[2025] Green Montenegro International Film Festival [Montenegro]
[2025] Blue Planet Future Festival (Jury Grand Prize; Audience Award) [South Korea]
[2025] Izmir International Film and Music Festival [Turkey]
[2025] Festival Internacional de Cine Cámara Lúcida [Ecuador]
[2025] Dili International Film Festival (Best Documentary Feature Award) [East Timor]
[2025] Ulsan Ulju Mountain Film Festival (Best Director Award) [South Korea]
[2025] International Film Festival “Northern Character” [Russia]
[2025] European Union Film Festival – EUFF [Canada]
[2025] Raw Material Week [Belgium]
[2025] International Disaster Film Festival – UAFF [Turkey]
