The Genie in a Tin of Ravioli 2005 ( 7)

Armand works on the assembly-line of a tinned pasta factory. One evening he opens up a tin of ravioli for dinner. Much to his surprise, a Genie jumps forth, promising to fulfill any two wishes.

Spud 2006 ( 7)

The Silence Before Bach 2007 ( 7.3)

This latest feature from the eccentrically experimental Catalan director Portabella is a beautiful, sometimes faintly bonkers celebration and contemplation of the role Bach’s music plays in the world today. Blending historical reconstruction with very loosely linked ‘dramatic’ scenes and documentary sequences, the film constitutes a playful, painterly sequence of variations on the argument that Johann Sebastian changed the way the world hears thanks to his extraordinary ear for harmony.

General Report II: The New Abduction of Europe 2015 ( 5)

Portabella is putting forward the second part of one of his historic works, the “General report on certain matters of interest for a public screening”, which peeked out in 1976 at the start of the political transition process after Franco’s death. This second “Report” is made in the context of a severe systemic crisis in the cultural, economic-financial, political and energy fields. Above all, it nevertheless bears witness to the way civil society is coming out of this crisis with a new prominence, consisting quite simply in ordinary people’s recovering politics.