Progress Without Memory
"Progress Without Memory", follows the final journey of the centenary BA-61 locomotive, on the margins of the Beira Alta line, evoking time, abandonment, and what endures. Between steam, rust, and silence, the film reveals a tribute to a machine that resists oblivion and the erosion of promises.
Through the voices of the inhabitants of Pampilhosa, the narrative unfolds as a sensory reflection on identity and transformation. In this final passage, the locomotive asserts itself as a living presence, a mirror of the ties between past and present, and a symbol of hope for a possible renewal and return.
To activate English subtitles, simply press play and click on CC in the bottom right corner of the screen.
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Paulo FajardoDirectorLeone's Almería, Scorched Earth, Wellington's First Line, Breaking Waves
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Paulo FajardoWriterLeone's Almería, Scorched Earth, Wellington's First Line, Breaking Waves
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Paulo FajardoProducerLeone's Almería, Scorched Earth, Wellington's First Line, Breaking Waves
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Ana C. SoaresKey Cast"Voice #1"Scorched Earth
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Carolina GalvãoKey Cast"Voice #2"
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Eduardo MotaKey Cast"Voice #3"Scorched Earth
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Elisabete ParedesKey Cast"Voice #4"
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Gonçalo PereiraKey Cast"Voice #5"
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Guilherme CarapetoKey Cast"Voice #6"
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Joaquim GalvãoKey Cast"Voice #7"
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José DiasKey Cast"Voice #8"
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José PereiraKey Cast"Voice #9"
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La Salete DiasKey Cast"Voice #10"
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Maria da Conceição ToméKey Cast"Voice #11"
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Sérgio GalvãoKey Cast"Voice #12"Scorched Earth
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Solange PereiraKey Cast"Voice #13"
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Suzy GalvãoKey Cast"Voice #14"
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Paulo FajardoCamera OperatorLeone's Almería, Scorched Earth, Wellington's First Line, Breaking Waves
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Rui CostaOriginal Music
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Paulo FajardoEditorLeone's Almería, Scorched Earth, Wellington's First Line, Breaking Waves
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Daniel LouroPhoto EditorLeone's Almería
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Ana C. SoaresThanksScorched Earth
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Ben MartinThanksThe Flamingo Flight
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Fernando SantosThanks
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Mário Rui CunhaThanksResiste BA-61!
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Marta PiresThanksScorched Earth
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Mónica Sofia LopesThanks
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Ricardo VenâncioThanksWellington's First Line
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Suzy GalvãoThanks
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Vítor SimõesThanksResiste BA-61!
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Abel Pinto CabralArchive FootageResiste BA-61!
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Project Title (Original Language):Progresso Sem Memória
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Project Type:Documentary, Short
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Runtime:10 minutes
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Completion Date:February 23, 2026
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Country of Origin:Portugal
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Country of Filming:Portugal
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Language:Portuguese
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Shooting Format:Digital
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Aspect Ratio:16:9
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Film Color:Black & White
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First-time Filmmaker:No
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Student Project:No
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Digital Cinema Package:Unavailable
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Stockholm City Film FestivalStockholm
Sweden
April 25, 2026
Official Selection -
Lowther's Short SupportWest Beach Lytham
United Kingdom
June 17, 2026
Official Selection -
Pune Short Film FestivalPune
India
June 7, 2026
Official Selection -
Encontros de Cinema na Mealhada |CCGB JulhoMealhada
Portugal
July 16, 2026
Portugal Premiere
Official Selection -
Viana CineFest - Festival de Cinema ao Ar LivreLuanda
Angola
July 29, 2026
Official Selection
Paulo César Fajardo was born in 1980, in the city of Figueira da Foz, Portugal. He began his activity as an independent producer in 1999, having developed several documentary and fiction projects, and in 2006, he completed his degree in Tourism from the Polytechnic Institute of Leiria (Portugal).
"Outono/Fall" (2000), his first short film, earned him the International Critics' Prize at the Figueira da Foz International Film Festival. In the following years he collaborated as a freelancer in the areas of camera operator, editor and director in entertainment programs for various national and international television channels: SIC, RTP, TVI, Canal 6 - Pluricanal, SportTV, VIVA, GMTV, TV5 and CamõesTV.
Among his most noticeable films, which earned him national and international recognition at film festivals, are the documentaries "Berlenga - A Ilha do Farol" (2011), "A Rebentação/Breaking Waves" (2018), "A Primeira Linha de Wellington/Wellington's First Line" ( 2021), "Africa, como eu a vi" (2024) and the film “Terra Queimada/Scorched Earth” (2022). In 2012, as a co-host, he started the podcast "VHS", the longest-running cinema podcast in Portugal, awarded with the Podes prize in 2025, and from 2012 to 2016, he created and directed the web tv "BairradaTV".
In 2017 he was co-founder of the "Marmostra" film festival, in 2019 he was a founding member of "Cineclub Bairrada", in 2023 he was invited to co-program "Encontros de Cinema na Mealhada/Cinema Meetings in Mealhada" and in 2025 he co-founded the "CineClube Gândara Bairrada". From 2004 to the present, he has been working as a tv news cameraman and editor for the television channels SIC and SIC Notícias, where he highlights the production of several special reports and the weekend section "Castelos de Portugal/Castles of Portugal" for the news program "Jornal da Noite".
This story is a biographical representation of the BA-61 locomotive.
In 2017, I made a documentary about the journey of the BA-61 locomotive along the Northern and Beira Alta railway lines in Portugal, up to its abandonment and neglect in a warehouse near Pampilhosa Railway Station, in Mealhada, where it was at the mercy of theft and vandalism. I was struck by the injustice of its story and decided to tell it in “Resiste BA-61!”.
Eight years later, that film has become obsolete. The warehouse where it lay was demolished, and its fate was sealed with its transport to the Portuguese Railway Museum, for a possible restoration, but with no scheduled return to its homeland, Pampilhosa. Rather than retelling the same story, I decided to pay tribute to this century-old locomotive, unique in the world, through the voices of the inhabitants of the village of Pampilhosa, giving it a state of mind and a personality — attentive to the evolution of progress without memory.
This film is a collaborative effort and was done without any budget. Everyone involved participated free of charge.