Film Screening

The new documentary film “Tales of Oblivion” (theatrical release July 2025) by Portuguese director Dulce Fernandes grapples with the discovery of the archeological site of Valle da Gafaria in Lagos, Portugal, which is the only mass burial site containing the remains of enslaved Africans ever discovered in Europe. The film threads tales of violence and brutality from the past with powerful sights and sounds of the present, and confronts the viewer with questions regarding the memorialization of slavery in Portugal generally, and about the dignity of the ancestors who had been discarded in the urban landfill of 15th century Lagos specifically.

Together with community activists, SAfA will honor these ancestors in an Ancestor Tribute Ceremony in nearby Lagos on Saturday, the 26th of July.

The screening of the film “Tales of Oblivion” will take place on Thursday, the 24th of July, at the Instituto Português do Desporto e Juventude, in downtown Faro (see map here) at 8:30pm. The event will include the 63-minute film, followed by a 45min-1h discussion with filmmaker Dulce Fernandes and researcher Vicky M. Oelze as well as members of the Anson Street African Burial Ground project team.