Tsai Ming-Liang, Jane Birkin, and Cinema Treasures to Discover at Batalha Between December and February, Batalha Centro de Cinema presents a thematic cycle dedicated to dance music, three retrospectives, and a special program proposing the (re)discovery of recently restored cinema treasures. Alongside, the audience can visit two new exhibitions, by Jonathas de Andrade and Salomé Lamas.

Presented from December 2nd to January 19th, the cycle "After Hours: Clubbing in Cinema" takes a retrospective look at the evolution of dance music, using cinema to explore how nightlife culture transformed personal moments into collective movements of assertion and emancipation.

From January 13th to February 28th, the retrospective "Tsai Ming-Liang, Time of Desire" is dedicated to the work of one of the greatest names in contemporary cinema.

The filmmaker has a prolific filmography — including the renowned "The Taste of Watermelon" —, multiple times awarded at Cannes. The retrospective includes all his feature-length fiction films, as well as two installations breaking gender barriers.

"Turning with Cronenberg"

The retrospective "Who are you, Jane B.?", presented from January 20th to February 22nd, follows and explains the different phases of Jane Birkin's career, a multifaceted artist and emblem of a generation. The program includes films by Michelangelo Antonioni, Agnès Varda, Jacques Deray, Marion Hänsel, and Joe Massot, and also two feature films directed by Birkin.

Until December 20th, it's still possible to watch "Turning with Cronenberg." The program — one of the most followed by the Batalha audience since its opening — enters the final stretch of David Cronenberg's filmography, where the director continues to explore ideas of transformation, moving away from body horror to focus on the human psyche.

Starting December 28th, Batalha initiates a new program, "Archive Treasures," proposing the (re)discovery of works recently restored by industry-leading laboratories, archives, and cinemateques. Works whose importance to cinema history is already recognized, as well as others, from multiple geographies, which for various reasons did not reach the general public. From February onwards, this program adopts a regular schedule with two monthly sessions.

Batalhawood and New Moons

On December 17th and February 25th, the Batalhawood project continues, developed in collaboration with neighbors from Batalha with roots in Bangladesh.

Two important dates for Bangladesh — Victory Day and International Mother Language Day — will be commemorated with the presentation of two films selected in conjunction with the Bangladesh Community Association of Porto. Admission is free, upon ticket pickup on the day of the sessions.

As for the New Moons program, it highlights works by filmmakers David Bonneville (December 12th), Tânia Dinis (January 11th), and Rita Barbosa (February 9th).

IndieJúnior Porto Festival

Between January 22nd and 28th, Batalha once again hosts the IndieJúnior Porto festival, which this year has Freedom as its central theme, joining the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of April 25th.

Until February 18th, it will also be possible to visit the exhibition "Overflight" by Jonathas de Andrade, an artist who represented Brazil at the Venice Biennale in 2022. The result of an artistic residency developed in Porto at the invitation of Batalha, this filmic work involved research and dialogue with associations and groups in the city, including the Columbophile Association of Porto District and the Bouça Residents' Radio Association.

The exhibition "Parafiction" by Salomé Lamas will be presented until March 10th. The filmmaker has been developing an artistic practice in the field of cinema and contemporary art that she designates as "speaking close" — a method she uses to relate to the world through fictional and non-fictional materials, presented in an open and provocative manner.

More information at www.batalhacentrodecinema.pt.