Mariana Bártolo

Maria João, 11-years-old, lives in a conservative suburb in the North of Portugal, subjected to the strong doctrine of her upbringing. In full pre-adolescence, she witnesses changes in her perception of reality, and in her relationship with her family and with her best friend Ana. The emergence of sensuality and desire awakens her to new bodily and affective sensations.

"Whale Beards" tells about myths and memories from a small village on the Atlantic coast. In old family tales one theme appears again and again: the mysterious gift of finding water on dry land. Shot on analogue film, "Whale Beards" traces an old and almost lost tradition.

A dense atmosphere of change and union strikes in Porto’s fishing port. Clara, the owner of a fishermen’s bar threatened by closure, finds in the arms of Raquel, an employee on cruise ships, the only shelter to express her fears and contradictions.