The Portuguese actress and director  presented ‘Nuestros hijos’ (‘Our children’), her new film, on Friday the 12th of May at ‘Cines Babel’, as a symbol of commitment towards the authorship of Mediterranean cinema this year. The film launches the Valencian cinema festival, Mostra Expandida, which is a new extension of Mostra de València-Cinema del Mediterrani, as it allows more cinematography and collaborations to be showcased outside of the usual cinema festival dates of the 19-29th of October 2023.

Medeiros was awarded the Palmera de Honor in 2020, and now she returns to Valencia to participate in the preview of ‘Nuestros hijos’, her latest film as a director. The film received a warm welcome when it was screened for the first time in Spain, as part of the 35th Mostra de València, and now the actress and director is back to participate in a colloquium with the public that will take place after the screening this Friday, the 12th of May, at 19h, at Babel cinema.

The film ‘Our Children’ stars Vera, a selfless mother, divorced after three marriages and living in a blended family with her children and stepchildren. Fearless and wise, she has experience fighting against the dictatorship and has lived all over the world. Tania, her daughter, has always been more conservative, and has been married for 15 years to another woman who is pregnant with their first child. Together, they discover the beauty of being part of a contemporary blended family.

Now coming to Spanish cinemas, the film has been screened not only at Mostra de Valencia but also at other international festivals such as those in Toronto, Coimbra, Chicago, and Havana. Medeiros’ debut film, ‘April Captains’ (2000), was selected for the Cannes Festival. As a director, she also collaborated in the film ‘Bem-vindo a São Paulo’ (2004), and played a significant part in the creation of documentaries ‘Je t’aime, moi non plus: artistes et critiques’ (2004) and ‘Repare Bem’ (2013), as well as several short films. In her recognised performance as an actress, she has participated in emblematic titles such as ‘Golden Balls’ (Bigas Luna, 1993), ‘Pulp Fiction’ (Quentin Tarantino, 1994) and ‘Airbag’ (Juanma Bajo Ulloa, 1997), and won the Volpi Cup in Venice for ‘Two Brothers, My Sister’ (Teresa Villaverde, 1994). In 2003 she was awarded the title of Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres de France.

The dramatic film will be an excellent way of launching the Mostra Expandida festival, bringing together a story of love, family, and strong female personas.

Report by Melissa McCrow

Article copyright ‘24/7 Valencia’

‘Maria de Medeiros  in Valencia’  photo copyright 24/7 Valencia

‘Nuestros hijos’  (Film presentation with  Director Maria de Medeiros)

Friday the 12th of May 2023 at 19:00h

Cines Babel,

Calle Vicente Sancho Tello 10

46021, Valencia

Cines Babel películas en versión original (cinesalbatrosbabel.com)

Cinema festival: 19-29th of October 2023, ‘Mostra de València’, Cinema del Mediterrani.