IZIDINE, a recently promoted Police Detective, is called to an elderdy home set in a former colonial fortress to investigate a crime: VASTO EXCELÊNCIO, the home's director has been murdered. MARTA, the home's nurse tries to steer the investigation to the real crime, the home's very own existence. IZIDINE is confronted with a surprise: all the residents confess that they are the murderer. Their motives going from the way the director treated the elderly, beating them, the domestic violence perpetrated by the director on his own wife's, or the nurse confessing a love affair with the deceased who forced her to have an abortion.
The detective will slowly discover that the real crime was a revenge. The director used the Home to smuggle weapons, which the elderly made disappear, sentencing him to be killed by his buddy criminals.
with
Izidine
Horácio Guiamba
Marta
Maria Adamugy
Vasto Excelêncio
Tomás Bié
Nhonhoso
Mário José Mabjaia
Navaia
Adelino Branquinho
Nãozinha
Josefina Massango
Ernestina
Isabel Jorge
Salufo Tuco
Elliote Alex
Mourão (xidimingo)
Vitor Gonçalves
Bandeira
Stweart Sukuma
Director
Sol Carvalho
An Adaptation of
Under the Frangipani
by
Mia Couto
Script
Mia Couto
Sol Carvalho
Dialogues
Mia Couto
Script Doctor
José Eduardo Agualusa
Executive Producers
Jacinta Barros
Paula Ferreira
Sol de Carvalho
Photography and Camera Director
Andre Guiomar
Musical Direction
Stewart Sukuma
Editor
Bruno Lopes
Sound Director
Gita Cerveira
Art Direction
Cláudia Lopes Costa
Actors Management
Chimene Costa
Sound Editing
Tiago Inuit
Mix
Paulo Abelho
Color Correction
Miguel da Santa
Mafalda Aleixo - Walla Colective
Producers
Jacinta Barros
Rui Simões
Sol de Carvalho
Paulo Roberto de Carvalho
Gudula Meinzolt
Zézé Gamboa
Co-Production
Financing
Support
AUTHOR AND CO-SCRIPTWRITER'S STATEMENT
I think the book is very visual. There are characters which can be easily transferred to film. Without realizing it, I found myself creating a film script when I wrote the book more than 20 years ago.
I am thrilled with the idea of participating in the transformation of the book into a film script. To work with a friend, to work with a mozambican crew is something that appeals to me a great deal.
Mia Couto
DIRECTOR AND CO-SCRIPTWRITER'S STATEMENT
UNDER THE FRANGIPANI represents what in MIA COUTO's work is more appealing to me: The use of a microcosmos charged with Magical realism where an apparent specific story (be it political, thriller or a romance) is in fact symbolic of a wider take on society. This story touches on themes which are dear to me: Respect for the elderly, racial identity problems, violence against women and widespread corruption.
Acknowledging film and literature specificities, one of the biggest challenges is precisely to be able to work with the author of the original work on the screenplay. Magic realism opens a visual and aesthetic potential that I believe to be a perfect match with the African world and film.
Sol de Carvalho
MIA COUTO was born in Beira, Mozambique in 1955. He's currently a teacher, biologist and a writer. Has received many awards and distinctions among which the nomination of his book Sleepwalking Land as one of the 12 best books of the 20th century, by the Zimbabwe Literature International Festival Jury.
Has become one the most well known Portuguese speaking writers. His work with linguistics has enabled him to obtain great expressiveness, through which he is able to impart his readers all the drama of Mozambican life after the independence. His work is translated and published in the following countries: Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Chile, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, United Kingdom, Czech.
SOL DE CARVALHO was born and lives in Mozambique. Studied film in Portugal. Was a journalist, and is a filmmaker since 1984. Has directed 4 feature films, several films for TV and Documentaries, several having been awarded in international film festivals. His latest feature MABATA BATA, a MIA COUTO's short story adaptation has been selected to the Rotterdam International Film Festival and will be competing at the prestigious african festival, FESPACO. He is the current Director of PROMARTE, one of the most prestigious and oldest film and video production companies in Mozambique.
