Luís Miguel Cintra
Acting
An iconic actor and stage director in Portugal, Luís Miguel Cintra was born in Madrid, in 1949. His connection to theater began in 1968, at the Faculty of Letters Theater Group, when he was studying Romance Philology at the University of Lisbon. From 1970 to 1972, he attended the Acting Technical Course, in the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, thanks to a scholarship from the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. When he returned to Portugal, he founded, along with Jorge Silva Melo, the Teatro da Cornucópia Company, in 1973, where he directed plays by some of the great names in theater, including Aeschylus, Sophocles, Shakespeare, Brecht, Beckett, Strindberg, and many others, almost always participating as an actor in the plays he directed. At the same time, until the 80s, he was a theater critic for O Tempo e o Modo magazine and he managed the Seara Nova Theater Collection, from Estampa publishing house, and the Theater Collection, from Ulmeiro publishing house. As a reader, Luís Miguel Cintra recorded complete readings of Viagens na Minha Terra, by Almeida Garrett and Amor de Perdição, by Camilo Castelo Branco, as well as poems by Pessoa, Sophia de Mello Breyner, Camões, Antero de Quental and Ruy Belo. In 1987, Cintra made his debut as an opera stage director, with L'Enfant et les Sortilèges, by Ravel and Dido and Aeneas, by Purcell, at the Teatro Nacional de S. Carlos. In the following years, he directed operas by Mozart, Haydn, Cherubini, among others. He worked with the Teatro Nacional de S. Carlos Choir and the Gulbenkian Choir, as a reader, in recitals by authors such as Schubert, Liszt, Sati and Poulenc. In 1984, he entered the Venice Biennial Theater Festival with his group and in 1988 he directed the show La Mort du Prince et Autres Fragments, by Fernando Pessoa, for the Avignon Festival. Later, he kept on presenting plays in Italy, France, Spain and. Belgium In addition to the theater, Luís Miguel Cintra began his career in cinema early, making his debut in a short film by João César Monteiro. From that point until now, he worked in over 70 films, with directors like the aforementioned João César Monteiro, Paulo Rocha, Manoel de Oliveira, Joaquim Pinto, João Botelho, Teresa Villaverde, Pedro Costa and the American John Malkovich. His many awards include two Bordalo da Casa da Imprensa Awards for Best Acting in Film (1995) and Best Acting in Theater (1997), two Globos de Ouro for Theater Personality of the Year (1999) and Best Theater Actor (2003), the Coimbra University Award and the Pessoa Prize, both in 2005. The LEFFEST will pay tribute to Luís Miguel Cintra’s work as an actor, through a selection of films he starred in; and as a stage director, showing recordings of some of the plays, followed by discussions with the audience and several actors he worked with.
TV Shows(1)
Movies(95)
Memoirs of Teatro da Cornucópia
2025
The Life of Mirrors
2025
Arrabalde
Prof. Luís
2024
We Are on Air
Voz
2024
Truth or Dare?
Self
2023
O Filme Feliz :)
2023
Love Lights
2022
Pathos
2021
Pathos Ethos Logos
2021
Around Rocha’s Table
Self
2021
A Present Light
2021
War
Cabo Mira
2020
Manuel Casimiro - Pintar a Ideia
Narrador
2018
Rage
Camacho
2018
Anteroom
2018
Días color naranja
2016
Correspondences
2016
The Old Man of Belem
Luís de Camões
2014
Illusion
2014
The New Testament of Jesus Christ According to John
2013
If I Were a Thief... I'd Steal
Vitalino
2013
Biette
Self
2013
Second Hand
Henrique Castro Lima
2013
The Enclosure of Time
Louis Canterel
2013
Gebo and the Shadow
Chamico
2012
Demain?
Ruben Dario
2011
The world that was (and that is)
Narrator
2011
The Strange Case of Angelica
Engenheiro
2010
The Sword and the Rose
Rosa 2
2010
Eccentricities of a Blonde-Haired Girl
2009
O Poeta Doido, o Vitral e a Santa Morta
Narrator
2008
Romance de Vila do Conde
Narrator
2008
From Now On
António
2008
Pas Perdus
(voice)
2008
Christopher Columbus, The Enigma
Diretor Museu Porto Santo
2007
One of Us Cannot Be Wrong
Devil
2007
Carlos de Oliveira: Upon the Left Side
2007
Magic Mirror
Filipe Quinta
2006
The Fifth Empire
Simão, Sapateiro Santo
2004
The Days When I Don’t Exist
L'oncle
2003
A Talking Picture
Himself
2003
The Dancer Upstairs
Calderón
2002
The Wolf of the West Coast
2002
The Uncertainty Principle
Daniel Roper
2002
Rending
professor
2001
Word and Utopia
Padre António Vieira (middle age)
2000
The Heart's Root
Catão
2000
Snow White
O Caçador
2000
Moonfish
Dr. João José
2000
Erros Meus
Luís de Camões
2000
April Captains
Brigadeiro Pais
2000
Os 25 Anos do Teatro da Cornucópia
Himself
2000
The Spousals of God
God's Messenger
1999
The Letter
M. da Silva
1999
Inquietude
Son
1998
Transatlantique
Aquilino
1997
The Convent
Baltar
1995
Casa de Lava
Actor convidado
1995
Blind Man's Bluff
Blind Man
1994
Two Brothers, My Sister
Friend at the Apartment
1994
Here on Earth
Miguel
1993
Abraham's Valley
Carlos de Paiva
1993
Zéfiro
Narrator
1993
Villa Mauresque
Tiago
1993
Poor George
Highschool Teacher Luis
1993
Day of Despair
Freitas Fortuna
1992
The Last Dive
Hyperion Extracts Reader (voice)
1992
Alcibíades
Voice
1992
The Divine Comedy
Prophet
1991
No, or the Vain Glory of Command
2nd Lt. Cabrita / Viriato / King John II of Portugal
1990
Blood
The Uncle
1989
Recollections of the Yellow House
Lívio
1989
Where the Sun Beats
Artur (voice)
1989
A Propósito da Bandeira Nacional
Narrator
1988
The Cannibals
Viscount d'Aveleda
1988
Tall Stories
Dr. Fernando
1988
The Jester
Count of Trava
1987
The Mountains of the Moon
João
1987
My Case
L'Intrus
1986
The Satin Slipper
Don Rodrigue
1986
No one Twice
Carlos
1985
Vertiges
Herbert Ardown
1985
Lisboa Cultural
1984
Signals of Life
1984
Gestures and Fragments
Armando (voice)
1983
Island of Loves
Wenceslau de Moraes
1982
Silvestre
Pilgrim / Knight / D. Raimundo
1982
E Não se Pode Exterminá-lo?
Valentin 1
1979
Neither Bird Nor Fish
1978
O Outro Teatro ou As Coisas Pertencem a Quem as Torna Melhores
1977
Entremês Famoso Sobre a Pesca no Rio Minho
1974
A Pousada das Chagas
1972
Fragments of an Alms-Film
Narrator (voice)
1972
He Goes Long Barefoot That Waits For Dead Men's Shoes
Lívio
1970
A Morte do Príncipe