Looking for Antonio Hunting the streets of Lisbon in search of the ghost of a dead musician who left behind not only a share amount of contradictions and rumours but also a translucent love that would keep him alive for generations to come and the seeds of a colourful cultural revolution. This is a hunt for the living memory of António Variaçoes a humble, restless, melancholic, provocative and ambitious farmer’s kid turned hairdresser and musician who despite his tragic premature death became Portugal’s first pop star.

Serendipitous encounters with extra-ordinary characters are challenges that every filmmaker (if not every human being) must, I believe, take on. I was struck by the fact that such a superficial thing as a physical resemblance with a person who had passed away twenty years before could open up some many insights into a place that I knew nothing about and also about my own life. My face, in Portugal, was an adamant attracting people to share with me not only their stories and memories but also their smiles and warmth. Starting to reflect upon his life I discovered António’s luminous capacity to generate reflections about our wishes, dreams and fears. António had left behind a trace of love and I had decided to explore the meaning of this love.

Regia: Paolo Favero