Portugal has submitted films for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film since 1980. The award is given annually by the United States Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to a feature-length motion picture produced outside the United States that contains primarily non-English dialogue.
As of 2026, Portugal has submitted forty-three films, but none of them were nominated. The country holds the record of the most submissions without a nomination in the category.
Submissions The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has invited the film industries of various countries to submit a film for consideration for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film since 1956 (before this, it was given as an honorary award from 1947 to 1955). The International Feature Film Committee oversees the process and reviews all the submitted films, releasing a shortlist of 10 films in mid-December. Following this, they vote via secret ballot to determine the five nominees for the award.
The Portuguese nominee was selected by a jury selected by the (in English, the Cinema and Audiovisual Institute). Since 2012, the submission is selected by the Portuguese Academy of Cinema.
Manoel de Oliveira is the filmmaker with most films selected to represent the country, with eight submissions. Other legendary Portuguese filmmakers submitted include: , , and .
The country first and only nomination in the awards ceremony came with the animated short film Ice Merchants (2022), directed by João Gonzalez, which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.
All films submitted are primary in Portuguese, with the exception of Belle Toujours (2007), which is in French. Below is a list of the films that have been submitted by Portugal for review by the academy for the category by year.
Year(Ceremony) Film title used in nomination Original title Director(s) Result 1980(53rd) Morning Undersea Manhã Submersa 1982(55th) Francisca 1983(56th) No Trace of Sin Sem Sombra de Pecado 1984(57th) Dead Man's Seat O Lugar do Morto 1985(58th) Ana and António Reis 1988(61st) Hard Times Tempos Difíceis 1989(62nd) The Cannibals Os Canibais 1990(63rd) The King's Trial O Processo do Rei 1991(64th) O Sangue 1992(65th) Day of Despair O Dia do Desespero 1993(66th) Abraham's Valley Vale Abraão 1994(67th) Three Palm Trees Três Palmeiras 1995(68th) God's Comedy A Comédia de Deus 1997(70th) Voyage to the Beginning of the World Viagem ao Princípio do Mundo 1998(71st) Anxiety Inquietude 1999(72nd) The Mutants Os Mutantes 2000(73rd) Too Late Tarde Demais 2001(74th) Camarate 2002(75th) O Delfim Fernando Lopes 2003(76th) A Talking Picture Um Filme Falado 2004(77th) The Miracle According to Salomé O Milagre segundo Salomé 2005(78th) Noite Escura 2006(79th) Alice 2007(80th) Belle Toujours 2008(81st) Our Beloved Month of August Aquele Querido Mês de Agosto 2009(82nd) Doomed Love Um Amor de Perdição 2010(83rd) To Die Like a Man Morrer Como Um Homem 2011(84th) José and Pilar José e Pilar 2012(85th) Blood of My Blood Sangue do Meu Sangue 2013(86th) Lines of Wellington Linhas de Wellington 2014(87th) What Now? Remind Me E Agora? Lembra-me 2015(88th) Arabian Nights: Volume 2 – The Desolate One As Mil e Uma Noites: Volume 2, O Desolado 2016(89th) Letters from War Cartas da Guerra 2017(90th) Saint George São Jorge 2018(91st) Peregrinação 2019(92nd) The Domain A Herdade 2020(93rd) Vitalina Varela 2021(94th) The Metamorphosis of Birds A Metamorfose dos Pássaros 2022(95th) Alma Viva Cristèle Alves Meira 2023(96th) Bad Living Mal Viver 2024(97th) Grand Tour Miguel Gomes 2025(98th) Banzo 2026(99th) The Scent of Things Remembered A Memória do Cheiro das Coisas António Ferreira
Shortlisted films Each year since 2019, the Portuguese Oscar selection committee has announced a shortlist of between four and six films prior to announcing the official Portuguese Oscar candidate. The following films were shortlisted as finalists to represent Portugal in the category: YearFilms2019 Parque Meyer · Raiva · Variações2020 Listen (disqualified) · Mosquito · Patrick2021 The Last Bath · Terra Nova · Nothing Ever Happened · Sombra · O Som Que Desce na Terra2022 Bad Living · Remains of the Wind · Salgueiro Maia - The Implicated · Wolf & Dog2023 Légua · Living Bad · Nayola2024 The Buriti Flower · The Fortunate Ones · Manga d’Terra · O Teu Rosto Será o Último2025 Dreaming of Lions · The Englishman's Papers · Hanami · Sobrevivientes2026 18 Holes to Paradise · Dirty Land · First Person Plural · Maria Vitória · Projecto Global
See also List of Academy Award winners and nominees for Best International Feature Film List of Academy Award-winning foreign language films Cinema of Portugal
Notes
References
External links The Official Academy Awards Database The Motion Picture Credits Database IMDb Academy Awards Page