Fernando Ávila

New years special aired on RTP on 1991

Neves and his wife Celia are the owners and managers of the 'Little Star Pension', a familiar hotel that caters to bourgeois family and would-be actors, instead of the ill-reputed 'Good-Night Pension' (just across the narrow street), where gigolos, whores, and criminals of all sorts may go for a quick encounter. However, not all is well among the ten residents of 'Little Star Pension': each dialogue line from every hotel guest is evidence that he, or her, has a reason (actually, more than one) to hate Neves - to the point of wishing him dead. Carelessness (or devious intention) by one party will provide the means; another, will create the propitious moment; yet another, and then the rest of them will create the festive New Year's Eve occasion - to do with Neves forever! Obviously, only the famous world private-eye Hércules Pirôt can solve the crime... for which he is called by phone, even before the deed is done.

In northern Argentina, in the province of Tucumán, almost 40 years after the last military dictatorship (1976-1983), the remains of missing persons have begun to appear. 'The Night of the World' tells the story of the Pozo de Vargas, a clandestine grave into which, for a time, more than 70 people were thrown, some of them still alive. The discovery of human remains is bringing about a profound change in both justice and issues related to human rights and historical memory. The documentary descends into the depths of the well to rescue, through the voices of their families, the stories of those who remained buried in this pit for decades.