Catarina Demony’s family history is not unique in Portugal, but facing this history, which many would like to keep under the rug, and with it making a documentary that, from the slavery past, questions the present, is already something unique. When she was approximately 18 years old, Catarina discovered that she was a descendant of the Matoso de Andrade and Câmara family, who were one of the biggest traders of enslaved people in Angola between the 18th and 19th centuries.
From the history of family ancestors, from the slavery and colonial past of Portugal, the documentary “under the rug“, by Catarina Demony and Carlos Costa, shows how this past has an impact today, “is linked to the structural racism that exists in Portuguese society“.
The presentation of “under the rug” happened recently in Lisbon. The urgency in discussing the theme meant that Cinema Ideal turned out to be too small to receive all the people who wanted to see it “under the rug” and follow the debate that followed the viewing.