A programme of three short features engages with ideas of communality from three very different cinematic languages.

This collaboration between Filipa César, an artist and filmmaker, and Sónia Vaz Borges, a militant interdisciplinary historian, traces the ambitious educational movement that emerged during Guinea-Bissau’s struggle for independence from Portugal in the 1960s and ’70s. The pair revisit the legacies of the nomadic guerrilla schools of resistance conceived by rebel leader Amílcar Cabral, which became a long-lasting symbol of anti-colonial action. An investigation of the past and a call to future action, Mangrove School is a fascinating testimony to the vitality of collective resilience. 

Nazarbazi

Maryam Tafakory’s latest work investigates the long-forbidden direct representations of love and desire in Iranian cinema following the revolution in 1979 and its effects on Iranian artists’ creative processes ever since. Taking the form of a lyrical found-footage collage, Nazarbazi explores the creative power of abstraction and imagination to suggest intimacy without explicit portrayal, and serves as a powerful reminder of the universality, subsistence and repercussions of diverse forms of censorship across cultures. 

Atmospheric Pressure 

Peter Treherne’s work is an immersive journey through the fluctuations of climate and nature in a English farm. The camera lingers on a sombre landscape where living creatures stiffly coexist and interfere with their environment. Departing from anthropocentric scrutiny, the air gets heavy as an approaching storm approaches, and the living beings start to disappear. Treherne’s remarkably dense visual language and sound design combine to create a highly sensorial experience, highlighting topical intersections between our exploitation of the environment and our vulnerability towards it. UK premieres + Q&A with directors Filipa César, Maryam Tafakory and Peter Treherne.

This screening of three UK premieres is followed by a Q&A with directors Filipa César, Maryam Tafakory and Peter Treherne, hosted by curator and writer Astrid Korporaal.

Also on Monday: