A Portuguese-born director with a pioneering approach to immigration, in particular the mostly clandestine exodus of thousands of Portuguese citizens to France in the 1960s. Taking his own experiences as a starting point, as well other life stories which he has researched since, he has drawn a fair political and social portrait of the difficulties these immigrants went through (life in the projects, scheming employers, discrimination), piecing together a collective history and memory, and breaking the silence and guilt that have for many years surrounded them.