MoreThan Films has acquired international sales rights to Denise Fernandes' feature film debut, "Hanami," which will premiere next Wednesday at the Concorso Cineasti del Presente section of the Locarno Film Festival.
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“Hanami” is set on a remote volcanic island in Cape Verde where most people are looking for a way to leave. It is the story of Nana. The young girl suffers from a strange illness, develops a fever and must travel to the foot of a volcano for treatment. There she finds a world that blurs the lines between dreams and reality. Years later, when Nana reaches her teenage years, her mother reappears in her life.
Fernandes was born in Lisbon to Cape Verdean parents and grew up in Switzerland. She has been a filmmaker for over a decade, and her breakthrough came with 2020’s “Nha Mila,” which screened in competition at festivals including Locarno and Uppsala and was nominated for best short film at the Portuguese Film Academy Sophia Awards.
About “Hanami,” Fernandes said, “Growing up in Europe, I noticed that Cape Verde was often left out of world maps and globes because of its small size. To make it visible, I made Cape Verde and its people the central theme of my first feature film.”
