Banzo
The Instituto Cervantes, in collaboration with Fiacine, presents the Portuguese feature film Banzo as a candidate for the 2026 Oscar for Best International Feature Film. After the screening, director Margarida Cardoso will participate in a Q&A session with the audience.Synopsis: 1907. Afonso begins a new life on a tropical island off the African coast as a plantation doctor. He is tasked with treating servants “infected” by Banzo, a deep, fatal nostalgia that causes many slaves to succumb to hunger or take their own lives. To prevent it from spreading, the group is sent to an isolated hill surrounded by forest. Afonso tries to cure them, but understanding their spirits is a challenge more difficult than any medical intervention.