A dog was abandoned in its own home at the time when my grandfather began to experience his widowhood and I was returning from London, a place where I felt lonelier than ever.

“La Durmiente” explores the story of the medieval Infanta Beatriz of Portugal through fabulation and children’s imagination. Entirely shot at the Monastery of Sancti Spiritus in Toro, a space once inhabited by Beatriz and where her tomb lies, these children stage and interpret fragments of the life of this character erased by history, yet preponderant in the Portuguese dynastic crisis of 1383.

In the mid-1980s, during a summer day, Rui Carlos and his friends Maranau and Tomané enjoy their free time in the neighborhood, between football matches and playful games. Rui Carlos repairs his worn-out shoes and heads out to borrow a valuable football from their neighbor, Dona Olinda, who daily entrusts it to him. As the teams are chosen and the game begins, typical neighborhood interruptions ensue: a visit from Mascote the dog, a break for lunch, and spontaneous games. But when the ball gets punctured, Rui Carlos is left to face responsibility and the realities of growing up.

Early Spring. A sonata, a letter, a bouquet of flowers. A train runs slowly through the landscape of São João da Madeira, a small town in the north of Portugal. Samuel, 38, devotes his days to his work as a flute teacher and the rituals of mourning the early death of his wife Luísa, with whom he shared a life dedicated to music. After a visit from his brother, Samuel faces a dilemma.