Our Lady Who Burns

Nossa Senhora Que Queima

On a Portuguese mountain, saintly apparitions and alien encounters interweave with the story of a pregnant cat, in a series of paranormal encounters.

The Serra da Gardunha mountain range in central Portugal has long been associated with the unexplained. Over the years, alleged visions of saintly apparitions have given way to alien sightings, with witnesses reporting mysterious lights in the sky and rumours circulating that a UFO hangar lies hidden beneath the craggy rocks. Meanwhile, two friends speculate over the extent of the mountain’s power as they discuss whether its spirits might be able to offer relief to their old and heavily pregnant cat. In dreamlike 16mm, Alice dos Reis weaves together a beguiling and eerie portrait of a landscape imbued with unknowable magic.

This film will screen as part of the programme Shorts: Sculpted Lands.