In this screening, we discuss the contemporary influence of the filmmaking practice of António Reis and Margarida Cordeiro, focusing on three Spanish films that explore the relationship between rural communities and the animals that form part of their cultural, economic and social fabric—interweaving myths, rituals and landscape. In El becerro pintado, set in a Canarian village, the biblical myth of the ‘golden calf’ is re-enacted, evoking ideas of human idolatry and materialism. Wild Mane Crop centres on the hand-to-hand confrontation between men and horses, driven by an ancient Galician tradition. Arraianos takes us to a small village between Galicia and Portugal, which seems suspended in time, isolated by a dense forest. The landscape, marked by seasonal cycles and the latent presence of fire, shapes the life of the community—until the arrival of a stranger opens up the possibility of transformation.

Screening presented by Daniel Ribas (professor and researcher) and Raquel Morais (researcher)