A documentary by José Vieira Mendes evoking 40 Years of Carnation Revolution and the 50 Years of the hit 64 in Brazil .
Why you decided to do this film?
José Vieira Mendes : It was a kind of ' order ' of the Itinerant Festin - Portuguese Festival, which began as an idea that let me evoke in this festival Democracy and Dictatorship in a year of celebrations in Portugal and Brazil.
Why wanted to establish the parallel between the 40 years of revolution in Portugal and 50 years of the coup in Brazil ?
JVM : We are in 2014 at a time when many freedoms and guarantees of citizens in Portugal and Brazil ( and worldwide too, as we see every day on TV news ) are being threatened by the political power and the faceless financial capitalism, which does not create wealth, but inequality and instability in our lives. You have to remember everyone and especially to young people who seem a bit settled, that in Portugal and in Brazil, many people were arrested, tortured, and fought for the establishment of democracy , against repression and dictatorship. This precisely in two countries linked by language and culture. And then the example because of the Carnation Revolution greatly influenced the first openings and the transition to democracy in Brazil.
Why interview a priest, Alipio Freitas, what is its importance in terms of the April revolution?
JVM : Alipio is no longer a priest long ago. It is an almost mythical figure and a symbol of resistance and armed struggle in Brazil, he does very well the bridge with April 25th, as Zeca Afonso, a song dedicated to him called precisely ' Alipio de Freitas ' , included on the album ' My Tamanquinhas ' . It's a song in the background dedicated to all political and resistant to dictatorships and repression prisoners. Despite being stuck in Brazil, Alipio followed with great emotion, clandestinely, sneaking by guards and through a small battery radio the Carnation Revolution in Portugal. Watched in the background as many of the Portuguese mainland and Madeira also ( the drives are basically gave in Lisbon ) the revolution through the most democratic medium height and greater penetrating power.
During the shooting of your film which was more difficult and challenging in the process ?
JVM : The film is basically a long interview with Alipio de Freitas ( 1:30 a.m. ) , reduced to a film 32 ' , combining images of the Carnation Revolution and the coup of 64 was challenging the appropriation and selection of these images. Did as Jean - Luc Godard ' appropriated me ' these images available on Youtube, edited and worked them , thanks to the valuable work of Eduardo Amaro (the editor ).
What conclusions you draw at the end of the documentary?
JVM : Expected more impact in the media about the figure of Alipio de Freitas, which is however quite ill and unfortunately cannot attend the premiere of the film.
What now April 25th means to you 40 years later ?
JVM : I was 14 years old when happen the 25th of April. This evolution lived intensely in my youth, knowing that fortunately I did not have to go to war and would be a great opportunity to become mos in a democracy and a more open country in the world . For me April 25th is now a mix of utopia and disillusionment ! At a time in which we live a true civilizational setback , in which we stand to lose the least that is the right to work and who insists on erasing the memory of the values of 25th of April. I'm a little disappointed with this society ! In my own way I will continue fighting (writing or making movies ), for what I believe, fight against greed, for a more just society and well-being for all . I do not want to end up with the rich, I wish to end up poverty how try to do Alipio de Freitas and Zeca Afonso, they believe in the ' capital of happiness '.
