About

Known credits:
40
Birthday:
N/A
Place of birth:
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Website:
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Manuel Guimarães

Overview

Manuel Guimarães (1915–1975) was a Portuguese filmmaker.

In 1931, Guimarães studied painting in the School of Fine Arts in Oporto. He started to work in 1936 as a theater scenographer, illustrator and cartoonist, as well as a film poster designer. He became interested in cinematic art, and started out as assistant of directors as Manoel de Oliveira, António Lopes Ribeiro, Jorge Brum do Canto, Arthur Duarte and Armando de Miranda.

In 1949, he directed the short documentary O Desterrado, a film about the life and craft of the Portuguese sculptor Soares dos Reis. Saltimbancos as his first feature-film, which is an adaptation of the novel Circo (Circus) of the writer Leão Penedo. The plot is centered on the life of a small travelling circus. Meanwhile, Guimarães worked in advertising in Metro Goldwyn-Mayer.

In 1952, Manuel Guimarães directed Nazaré, whose script was written by the neo-realist writer Alves Redol, portraying the life of the fishermen from Nazaré. The film had several cuts caused by censorship. Vidas Sem Rumo (1956), script by Manuel Guimarães and dialogues by Alves Redol, suffered even worse cuts: about half of the film was cut and entire scenes were removed, becoming an almost unintelligible film.

Being constantly attacked by the regime, Guimarães opted to direct more commercial movies about sport events, since 1956. In his attempt to return to fiction, (A Costureirinha da Sé – 1958) Manuel had to accept product placement in the film. His next works were essentially documentaries promoting Portuguese towns and products.

António da Cunha Telles, who meanwhile began to produce the first films of the Portuguese Cinema Novo (New Cinema), became interested in him and accepted to do an executive production and co-production of two of his next films: O Crime da Aldeia Velha (1964), an adaptation of a Bernardo Santareno play and O trigo e o Joio (1965) based in the book with the same name, by Fernando Namora, who wrote the script as well. However, the public preferred a different kind of cinema, more entertaining, and Guimarães turn again to art documentary.

Manuel Guimarães had some periods where he returned to illustration and graphic works in newspapers and other publications and continued painting, specially in the end of his life, but without any public expression.

The 25 de Abril brought him hope, but it was too late. Ill, Manuel Guimarães couldn't end his last film, Cântico Final, adapted from the novel with the same name wrote by Virgílio Ferreira. The film was ended by his son, Dórdio Guimarães.

Known for

Acting
2017 Born with a Thunderstorm Actor N/A
N/A

Directing
1975 Cântico Final Directing Director N/A
N/A
1973 Areia Mar - Mar Areia Directing Director N/A
N/A
1971 Carta a Mestre Dórdio Gomes Directing Director N/A
N/A
1970 Resende Directing Director 59
Average
1969 Expressos Lisboa - Madrid Directing Director N/A
N/A
1969 António Duarte Directing Director 59
Average
1969 A Terra e o Homem Directing Director N/A
N/A
1968 Tráfego e Estiva Directing Director 59
Average
1968 O Ritmo na Vida Directing Director N/A
N/A
1967 Artes Gráficas Directing Director N/A
N/A
1967 O Porto, Escola de Artistas Directing Director 59
Average
1967 Ensino das Belas-Artes Directing Director N/A
N/A
1965 The Wheat and the Tares Directing Director N/A
N/A
1964 The Crime of Aldeia Velha Directing Director 59
Average
1959 O Primo Basílio Directing Assistant Director 58
Average
1959 My Little Seamstress Directing Director 58
Average
1956 Vidas sem Rumo Directing Director 58
Average
1952 Nazaré Directing Director 58
Average
1951 The Circus Directing Director 58
Average
1950 O Desterrado - Vida e Obra de Soares dos Reis Directing Director N/A
N/A
1950 Frei Luís de Sousa Directing Assistant Director 58
Average
1947 The Lion from Estrela Directing Assistant Director 59
Average
1942 Aniki-Bóbó Directing Assistant Director 60
Fair

Writing
1975 Cântico Final Writing Screenplay N/A
N/A
1956 Vidas sem Rumo Writing Screenplay 58
Average
1952 Nazaré Writing Screenplay 58
Average
1951 The Circus Writing Screenplay 58
Average

Production
1975 Prefácio a Vergílio Ferreira Production Producer N/A
N/A
1975 Cântico Final Production Producer N/A
N/A
1965 The Wheat and the Tares Production Producer N/A
N/A
1959 My Little Seamstress Production Producer 58
Average
1951 The Circus Production Producer 58
Average

Art
1959 My Little Seamstress Art Production Design 58
Average
1951 The Circus Art Production Design 58
Average

Editing
1975 Cântico Final Editing Editor N/A
N/A
1969 António Duarte Editing Editor 59
Average
1968 Tráfego e Estiva Editing Editor 59
Average
1965 The Wheat and the Tares Editing Editor N/A
N/A
1959 My Little Seamstress Editing Editor 58
Average