Red Desert was founded in 2008 and is primarily dedicated to the production of cinematic documentaries.
Its films have been presented and awarded at various film festivals, many of which are considered priority festivals by the ICA (Portuguese Institute of Cinema and Audiovisual). These include Fidmarseille, Clermont-Ferrand, CPH:DOX, Festival de Sevilla, Doclisboa, Porto Post Doc, Cartagena Festival, Festival do Rio, Thessaloniki Documentary Film Festival, Indie Lisboa, Curtas Vila do Conde, Guadalajara IFF, Documenta Madrid, Fantasporto, Caminhos do Cinema Português, Edinburgh Festival, among others. Red Desert's films have also been broadcast on national and international television networks such as RTP, Canal+, France 3, Canal 180, TvCine, and are available on VOD platforms like Filmin and DocAlliance.
Red Desert is a portuguese production company dedicated to the production and co-production of documentary films, with a track record dating back to 2008 and marked by collaborations with national and international filmmakers.
Throughout its activity, the company has produced and co-produced dozens of films, including short and feature-length films, documentary series and audiovisual projects, many of which have been selected for and awarded at national and international festivals. Its productions include The Forgotten, Cold Water, Inn, The Deserta's Fox, Tarrafal, Bostofrio, The Blue Apples, Lucefece – Where There Is No Vision, the People Will Perish, The Melusinas At The Edge of The River and Time Takes a Cigarette.
Red Desert's filmography has been presented at major festivals such as Doclisboa, Curtas Vila do Conde, Porto/Post/Doc, IndieLisboa, the Cannes Film Festival, CPH:DOX, Clermont-Ferrand, Guadalajara, Cartagena de Indias, the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival, Filmets, among many others, receiving numerous awards and jury mentions.
The company also develops projects in partnership with cultural institutions, municipalities, universities and social organisations, producing documentaries, television content, heritage projects and audiovisual installations. Its partners include RTP, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, the Centre for Social Studies of the University of Coimbra, Porto City Council, Paredes City Council and the European Anti-Poverty Network.
With a strong focus on documentary filmmaking, international co-production and supporting emerging filmmakers, Red Desert maintains an active presence in contemporary cinema, developing projects in Portugal and in collaboration with partners from several countries.
In 2020, Red Desert participated in Eurodoc with the project Os Continuadores da Revolução: we must not forget the past, which received support from the ICA in 2022 and is a co-production between Red Desert (Portugal), JBA Production (France) and Incomati Filmes (Mozambique).
The company currently has several projects in development, including A Terra das Viúvas dos Vivos, by Melanie Pereira (a co-production with Cósmica Producións, Galicia), and Festival Paredes de Coura: +35 Anos, by Pedro Neves.
The Followers of the Revolution, photography by Manuel Roberto.
Pedro Neves
Founder
His filmography includes films like Gazing Out to Sea (2007), En la Barberia (2007) , The Forgotten (2009), Disagreements (2010), Cold Water (2011), The Deserta’s Fox (2013), Inn (2014), Beyond our Means (2015), Neightbouhoods (2015). In 2016 he directed The Beach and Tarrafal. In the same year, he produced Home - El pays de la Ilusion, de Josephine Landertinger. In 2018 he produced Bostofrio, directed by Paulo Carneiro and directed and co-produced Shipwrecked. In 2019, he prodded and directed The Factory. In 2020 he graduated as an Eurodoc Alumni, with the project Os Continuadores da revolução: we must not forget the past.In 2022 he produced As Maçãs Azuis, by Ricardo Leite and, in 2023, Lucefece, also by Ricardo Leite and The Melusina, by Melanie Pereira. In 2024, he directed and produced (with JBA production) Dreams of a Revolution. In 2026, directed and produced (with JBA Production and Incomati Filmes) Os Continuadores da Revolução: we must not forget the past.
Pedro Neves was born in Leiria in 1977. He studied in Porto, post graduated at Faculdade de Letras, Porto University, writing a dissertation for his Master’s degree on Documentary during the April’s Revolution in Portugal. He has been a documentary filmmaker since 2006. In 2008 he founded the production company Red Desert Films.
His documentaries were presented in more than 40 festivals around the world, including CPH:DOX, Clermont-Ferrand, Guadalajara, Doclisboa, Porto Post Doc, Documenta Madrid, Curtas Vila do Conde, Curtas de São Paulo, Mecal, Extremadoc, Adana, L’Alternativa, Regard, Curtas Belo Horizonte, among others. His films have been exhibited in RTP, Canal Plus France and Afrique.