Dança dos Vagalumes

“A grain of poetry is enough to perfume an entire century.” This quote by Cuban poet José Martí serves as a prologue to a film that continually searches for glimmers of light in the darkness – like fireflies briefly illuminating an entire landscape. Leading us through the night, and toward its scattered brightness, is Joana, a woman returning to the MST settlement where she spent her childhood, this time as a teacher to a new generation of children. Her memories of childhood – woven from dreams and traumas alike – form a patchwork that broadens our understanding of collective struggle and life in the countryside.