RICARDO COSTA (the filmmaker)

Ricardo Costa, a Portuguese producer and film director, was born January 25, 1940 in Peniche, Portugal. The majority of his films are documentary ones; however, a lot of them have dramatic and poetical feeling which makes them more attractive to broader audiences.

Ricardo Costa studied at the faculty of arts at the Lisbon University. After completing the studies he earned a PhD in 1969, submitting a thesis on the novels of Kafka. Later he became a high school teacher and published several paper works on literature and cinema. After the Carnation Revolution in 1974 Ricardo Costa chose the profession of a filmmaker and became a part of the Grupo Zero together with other significant filmmakers of that time. Later he became an independent producer with a production company Diafilme. where he produced several of his films and some of other directors.

A number of Portuguese post-revolution filmmakers were influenced by the idea, that reality is the real and true poetry. So in order to prove and show that they were traveling around the country producing movies of everything they saw in their way. These movies were usually with a low budget and were supported with the state funds or made in co-production with the national broadcast TV station (the RTP). Some movies were political, some portrayed the reality and real events, but all of them were full of charm and poetical flair.

Ricardo Costa himself claims that presenting the reality as it is in its all beautiful colours is his main purpose rather than trying to change the world with his movies. He cultivates the style in which the reality turns into poetical expression and human portrait.

Ricardo Costa‘s last feature film, Brumas (Mists), was selected for the 60th Venice Film Fetival.

The article RICARDO COSTA AND THE FLOWING PICTURES by José de Matos-Cruz




Ricardo Costa, portugalų prodiuseris ir kino režisierius gimė sausio 25-ąją, 1940-aisiais metais Peniche mieste, Portugalijoje. Nors didžioji dauguma jo sukurtų filmų yra dokumentiniai, daugelyje jų egzistuoja dramatinis ir poetinis pojūtis, kurio dėka šie filmai yra patrauklūs plačiajai auditorijai.

Ricardo Costa studijavo Lisabonos universitete, menų fakultete. Baigęs studijas, 1969-aisias metais jis įgijo daktaro laipsnį apsigynęs disertaciją apie Kafkos romanus. Vėliau jis dirbo mokytoju gimnazijoje ir išspausdino kelis savo darbus apie literatūrą ir kiną. Po Raudonųjų Gvazdikų Revoliucijos 1974-aisiais, Ricardo Costa pasirinko filmų kūrėjo profesiją ir kartu su kitais garsiais to meto filmų kūrėjais tapo Grupo Zero dalimi. Vėliau jis tapo nepriklausomu prodiuseriu Diafilme kompanijoje, kurioje jis pastatė kelis savo ir kitų kino režisierių filmus.

Dauguma postrevoliucinių portugalų kino kūrėjų buvo paveikti idėjos, realybė yra tikroji poezija. Taigi, tam, kad tai įrodytų ir parodytų, jie keliavo po šalį ir kūrė filmus apie viską, ką tik sutikdavo savo kely. Dažniausiai tokie filmai būdavo mažo biudžeto ir buvo remiami valstybės lėšomis arba kuriami bendradarbiaujant su nacionaline televizija (RTP). Vieni filmai būdavo politiniai, kiti – vaizdavo tikrovę ir tikrus įvykius, tačiau visi jie buvo kupini žavesio ir poetinės nuojautos.

Pats Ricardo Costa tvirtina, kad būtent realybės vaizdavimas tokios, kokia ji yra iš tikrųjų, o ne bandymas pakeist pasaulį, yra jo tikrasis tikslas kuriant filmus. Jis kultivuoja stilių, kuriame realybė tampa poetiniu posakiu ir žmogiškuoju portretu.

Ricardo Costa paskutinis pilnametražis filmas Brumas (Miglos), buvo atrinktas į 60-ąjį Venecijos filmų festivalį.

José de Matos-Cruz straipsnis RICARDO COSTA AND THE FLOWING PICTURES



Feature films (pilnametražiai meniniai filmai)
1976 : Avieiros – Avieiros, Tagus fishermen
1976 : Mau Tempo, Marés e Mudança – Changing Tides
1979 : Castro Laboreiro – Castro Laboreiro
1979 : Pitões, aldeia do Barroso – Pitões, a village of Barroso
1980 : Verde por fora, vermelho por dentro – Green outside, red inside
1981 : O Pão e o Vinho – Bread and Wine (film)
1981 : Longe é a cidade – Far is the City
1981 : Ao Fundo desta Estrada – Further ahead on this road
1985 : O Nosso Futebol – Our Football Game
2003 : Mists – Brumas
Short and middle-length films (trumpametražiai filmai)
1974 : No Fundo de Tróia – On the Bottom of Troia
1974 : Apanhadores de Algas – Seaweed Catchers
1974 : Ágar-Ágar – Agar-agar
1975 : Tresmalho – Drifting
1975 : O Trol – Long-lining
1975 : O Arrasto – Trawling
1975 : Oceanografia Biológica – Biological Oceanography
1975 : Ti Zaragata e a Bateira – Uncle Zaragata and his Boat
1975 : Pesca da Sardinha – Sardine Fishing
1975 : Conchinha do Mar – Sea Shell
1975 : Às vezes custa – Sometimes it’s hard
1975 : A Sacada – The Miracle Fishing
1976 : Os Irmãos Severo e os Cem Polvos – The Brothers Severo and the Hundred Octopuses
1976 : À Flor do Mar – On the Waterline
1976 : A Colher – The Spoon
1976 : O Velho e o Novo – Old and New
1976 : A Falta e a Fartura – Lack and Wealth
1976 : Quem só muda de Camisa – Changing his Shirt
1976 : A Máquina do Dinheiro – The Money Machine
1976 : Viver do Mar – Living on Sea
1976 : Uma Perdiz na Gaiola – A Perdix in Cage
1976 : Nas Voltas do Rio – On the River
1976 : O Submarino de Vidro – The Glass Submarine
1976 : April Carnations – Cravos de Abril – The Carnation Revolution in Portugal
1977 : Sea born – E do Mar Nasceu
1978 : Música do Quotidiano – Everyday Music
1978 : Abril no Minho – April in Minho
1979 : A Lampreia – The Lamprey
1979 : A Coca – Saint George and the Dragon
1979 : Histórias de Baçal – Stories of Baçal
1979 : Esta aldeia, Rio de Onor – This Village, Rio de Onor
1979 : O Pisão – The Fulling Mill
1979 : A Feira – The Village Market
1979 : O Outro Jogo – The Other Game
1980 : Joaquim da Loiça – Joaquim da Loiça
1980 : Pastores da Serra da Estrela – Shepheards of Serra da Estrela
1980 : Barcos de Peniche – Ships of Peniche
1980 : O Parque Nacional de Montesinho – The National Park of Montesinho
1982 : Lisbon and the Sea Lisbon and the International Court for the Law of the Sea for the UNESCO
Other genres (kiti žanrai)
1989 – 2006 Paroles : Interviews with Jean Rouch