Mondial 2010 by Roy Dib

I was part of the jury for the short film competition in Queer Lisboa 18, together with journalist Ben Walters, and producer Joana Ferreira. This is our statements:

Best Short Film Mondial 2010 by Roy Dib
“The jury’s decision to recognise Mondial 2010 was an easy one. Roy Dib’s film seems simple, even offhand, but exhibits a rich cineastic sensibility that powerfully explores different notions of assimilation, intimacy and openness. It warmly expresses its main subjects’ characters though they are never seen. It hints at layers of necessary concealment and repression while recording a loving relationship. It conveys a disquieting sense of place that is at once locally specific and geopolitically resonant. And it makes you wonder: can a city be queer?”

Best Portuguese Short Film Frei Luís de Sousa by SillySeason
“A period text, a collective memory, the freedom to love against established conventions. Passion, flesh, body, the wait, anguish, repetition. The wait, anguish, repetition. A game in which the audience always returns to the starting point. About theater and cinema, without ever ceasing to be both. A game of wordplay. About identity. Who are you?”