A surrealist love story from Mozambique was one of the works-in-progress of the 2026 edition of Open Doors, the Locarno Film Festival‘s co-production platform and talent development program for filmmakers from equity-seeking communities and regions where artistic expression is at risk.
Its title is Chapa 100, and it comes from director Ique Langa, whose debut feature The Prophet (O profeta) world premiered at the International Film Festival Rotterdam this year.
The project, presented during the second edition of Open Doors with a focus on films from Africa, is being produced by Lara Sousa of Kulunga Filmes.
THR has compiled highlights about the movie and insight from Langa about Chapa 100 and the themes it explores.
SynopsisIn the busy streets of Maputo, 80-year-old flower vendor Sitóe offers brief moments of beauty to strangers passing through the city’s crowded “chapas,” the local minibuses that carry thousands of people every day. One morning, he meets Valentina, a vegetable seller in her seventies, and a simple flower sparks a quiet romance. Together, they dream of owning a small piece of land where flowers and vegetables can grow side by side. When a thief steals Valentina’s rented wig, Sitóe runs after him and is struck by a speeding chapa. The city moves on, but Sitóe does not. His spirit becomes tied to the very minibus that killed him, traveling through Maputo day after day among passengers carrying their hopes, grief, and exhaustion. Flowers slowly begin to bloom inside the vehicle, subtle signs of his lingering presence. One day, Valentina boards the chapa carrying the flower Sitóe once gave her. Surrounded by the quiet traces of his spirit, she feels his love beside her once again.
