Carlos do Carmo, Bernardo Sassetti: (2011)

You already know the legendary singer. For the first time, you'll get to know the woman behind the myth.

Ana Maria loves a modest guitar player, Júlio; when she herself in a 'retiro' (typical fado tavern), public and critics rend major applause. Fame brings about new friends, namely bohemian young who play and sing the fado with her, and not so young men but who rich and powerful enough to patronize her, promote her, and wish to become intimate with her. Júlio the guitarist feel betrayed, and he sets his mind to depart to the African colonies, to leave her forever. Knowing that he's going to embark, Ana Maria's heart between her first love, and the appeal of the rich and famous.

The great fadista, Amelia Rodrigues, made her screen debut in Capas Negras, which took its name from the black capes worn by the students in the university city of Coimbra, where the film is set. The action begins in a tavern where a group of former students are reminiscing about their time at the university. One of the students, Jose Duarte then breaks into song, performing an impromptu fado in the local Coimbra style. The tavern owner's niece, the aptly named Maria Lisboa promptly retaliates with a fado of the Lisbon variety. The melodramatic plot then centers on the frustrated romance between these two characters, and the soundtrack is essentially a musical duel between these two different styles of Portugal's national song.

Two incredible musicians generating an intense, moving and very special musical relationship. Raül Refree one of the most innovative european producers of the last decade, was blown away by Lina's voice, when he saw her sing at Clube de Fado in Lisbon. Lina, a Fado singer with classical training, 2 records on Sony Music and an expert on Amália Rodrigues, selected some of the Diva's Fado Classics and they immediately started to work in studio, a joint project. Raül framed Lina's voice in analog clouds, with brilliant arrangements and a never-before-tried approach, giving Fado a unique electronic view underlining its universal condition. Lina profoundly moving, each song she owns is a monument in the history of Fado, whose voice haunts us all. Sometimes you need to break the rules, that is how you end up making history.

A portrait of Amália by herself. Her personality, experiences, daring, songs, joys and sorrows and a journey that took her all over the world, are told here through moments when Amália crossed with the history of radio and television and public.