The festival has been taking place in Portugal since 1976. Cinanima is extremely popular both among the audience and film directors, who willingly send their animations to the festival. The competition comprises of several categories: films up to 5 minutes, films longer than 5 minutes and up to 24 minutes, films longer than 24 minutes and up to 50 minutes, school and graduation films, commissioned films and feature films – longer than 50 minutes. Apart from screenings, the festival also hosts workshops, exhibitions and performances.
5-minute-long Marta Szymańska’s animation was among the selected films and together with British production “Music & Clowns” directed by Alex Widdowson won festival’s Special Mention.
“Tango of Longing” is a painted story about the extraordinary nature of tango, which is not only erotic, full of desire or aggression, but mainly full of sorrow. Tango is longing, it is “a sad thought that is danced”. It can reveal our most intimate stories, innermost longings and needs, our secrets. It triggers in film characters powerful emotions, great longing, grief and melancholy. They lose themselves in the dance trying to find some relief, going after something lost, unreachable and absent. They can never be satisfied though, always longing.
The full list of the awarded films can be found here.