Three short films produced by students at Lusófona University were in the spotlight at this year’s CILECT Awards, the most prestigious international award recognising the best bachelor’s and master’s degree projects produced at film schools around the world.
“A Hora do Chico” ranks 7th out of 206 entries.
The Bachelor’s short film in Film and Media Arts, “A Hora do Chico”, directed by Rafael Sá Carneiro and João Severo in 2025, took 7th place out of 206 entries. This is the best result ever for a Portuguese production at the CILECT Awards.
The film tells the story of Chico Valentim, the presenter of a children’s programme promoting the Estado Novo regime. He is forced to make the most difficult decision of his life: to murder a colleague live on air or lose his father’s approval. Notably, all the films ranked above the Lusófona University film are master’s degree productions rather than bachelor’s projects.
“Mariana da Estação” ranked 18th out of 64 entries.
The film was developed as part of the RE:Anima programme by students from the fourth intake during an artistic residency led by director José Miguel Ribeiro in September 2025. RE:Anima is an Erasmus Mundus Master’s programme dedicated to animation and the creative arts. It is run by Lusófona University (through the Department of Cinema and Media Arts), the IADT – Dun Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology (Ireland), and the LUCA School of Arts (Belgium). The programme was recently recognised as the best animation school at Animafest Zagreb 2026.
The film revisits the memory of Mariana Maria, the owner of a tavern next to Ourique railway station, at a time when women's presence in such places was frowned upon. Through the memories of those who knew her, the documentary paints a portrait of a “hybrid figure” and “utterly unique” individual who left her mark on everyone who knew her.
“How to Download a Forest” ranks 36th out of 93 submissions.
Filmed in Portugal, “How to Download a Forest,” by Indian director Annette Jacob, came 36th out of 93 entries. Running for 18 minutes and set in 2026, the film visits herbaria and scientific expedition sites across the country to explore the ongoing task of collecting data and generating knowledge about the natural world. The project was part of the Erasmus Mundus DOCNOMADS Master’s programme, a two-year degree in documentary filmmaking that brings together three European universities in Lisbon, Vilnius, and Brussels. The course takes students to film in different cultural contexts throughout the programme.
The CILECT Award is presented annually to recognise the best films by students from film schools affiliated with the International Association of Film and Audiovisual Schools (CILECT), the most important and representative association in the sector at an international level, and attracts submissions from higher education institutions around the world.
