With the release of his second feature film, O Barqueiro, director Simão Cayatte confirms his unique cinematic vision. The film follows Joaquim, an anti-hero recently released on parole who begins working as a boatman in an illegal clam-harvesting operation on the south bank of the Tagus. Through a minimalist narrative and a focus on the physical actions of the characters—brought to life by actors such as Romeu Runa, Jani Zhao, and Miguel Borges—Cayatte crafts a realistic, poetic portrait that avoids the clichés of national identity, instead grounding its drama in the authentic textures of work and human gesture.