Ghosts of an Empire / Fantasmas do Império

Ariel de Bigault

In Portugal, Brazil and Africa, Ariel de Bigault, French author and director, has been exploring Portuguese-speaking cultures for years. Her film career began in Lisbon with documentaries. Then came the meeting with Brazil and the series Éclats Noirs du Samba (1987), with the great artists Gilberto Gil, Grande Othelo, Martinho da Vila, Paulo Moura, Zézézé Motta, celebrating Afro-Brazilian creation. She has contributed to the dissemination of African urban music: Anthologie des Musiques du Cap Vert 1959-1992 (1995), Musiques Urbaines d’Angola 1956-1998 (1999) and many records. The film Canta Angola (2000) shows the resistance of popular music artists in a war-torn Angola. Afro Lisboa (1996) reveals the faces and voices of various generations of African immigration in Lisbon. Margem Atlântica (2006) introduces us to authors, actors and musicians of African origins – Mariza, José Eduardo Agualusa, Kalaf Ângelo, Ângelo Torres – whose creations captivated audiences. Ghosts of an Empire, on the colonial imagination in Portuguese cinema, is a new stage in her Afro-Lusophone journey.