João Canijo
João Manuel Altavilla Canijo ( born December 10, 1957 in Porto ) is a Portuguese film director.
Life and work
Between 1977 and 1980, he studied history at the University of Porto, then turned to the cinema. Seven years he worked as an assistant director, as for Manoel de Oliveira ( Francisca 1980 Mon Cas 1986), Wim Wenders ( The State of Things 1981), Alain Tanner (in the white city, 1982), Werner Schroeter ( The Rose King 1984) or Paulo Rocha (O Desejado 1987).
His first short film he made in 1983. His first full-length feature film was Trés menos eu 1988, which ran on the Rotterdam International Film Festival the same year.
In 1987, he staged for the first time in the theater ( one of Edward A. Whitehead, under the name Jogos de Praia ( beach games) along with Diogo Dória in the Galeria Monumental, Lisbon). In the following years he brought pieces several times to the stage, for example from David Mamet or Eugene O'Neill.
In Wim Wenders' film for the European Capital of Culture Lisbon, Lisbon Story (1994 ), he served as executive producer.
With ganhar a vida ( Life deserve ) he deals with the reality of Portuguese migrant workers in the Paris suburbs and now falls on the international criticism, eg on the Cannes Film Festival.
His film Noite Escura ( Dark Night ) had its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival and was a candidate for the Oscar / Best Foreign Language Film.
For his latest film Sangue do meu Sangue (Blood of my blood ), he won the FIPRESCI Prize at the Film Festival of San Sebastian.
Almost all of his films were produced by Paulo Branco.