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A magical, vivid and poetic exploration of damaged human relationships. Nine passengers on a train must confront their fears, solitude and emotional emptiness.

Mother and son, running away from an abusing husband and father. A young couple about to became parents. A little girl going to school. A stressed business man. A broken hearted girl. All together in a train journey, telling the life story of an old couple. “Never seek anything outside yourself, everything lies in your own heart” is what describes this timeless journey, where these characters carry a heavy luggage on their shoulders: their life stories. A luggage full of pain, betrayal, angst, impotence to change, search for love, moments of happiness, hopelessness and, always last, hope.

Spanish/Portuguese filmmaker who has worked as producer and director in England and Portugal since 1995. He has produced several shorts and documentaries for television over the years. He currently lives in Porto (Portugal) where he set up his own production company, Fronteira Filmes, mostly dedicated to the production of documentaries.
In 1999 Carlos Ruiz directed and produced his first feature-length film: To anyone who can hear me. This film was premiered at the International Film Festival of Taormina, Italy and participated in festivals such as Edinburgh, Madrid, Sienna, Croatia, Roma, and Figueira da Foz. In 1999 To anyone who can hear me won two major awards at the International Film Festival of Figueira da Foz, Portugal: Grand Prix for best Feature Fiction Film and International Journalists Jury Prize and an Honorable Mention at the International Film Festival of Famalicâo, Portugal. In 2001 Carlos Ruiz produced Shadows, which was entered in competitions at the International Film Festival of Rotterdam (Netherlands) in January 2002. Shadows had its debut at Columbia Tri-Star Preview Theatre in London, England, 2001.

In 2004 Carlos Ruiz directs and produces his second feature film: Portrait, an award wining feature documentary which has participated in many International Film Festivals such as Taiwan, Ankara, Rome, Madrid, Mexico, Cadiz, Helsinski, DocLisboa and Tui-PlayDoc. In 2005 Portrait won Best Spanish Feature Film at the International Documentary Film Festival of Madrid, Spain. In the same year the film was awarded an Honorable Distinction at the International Documentary Film Festival of Tui, Pontevedra, Spain. In 2009 and 2010 Portrait was selected and distributed internationally by Miguel Cervantes’ Institute. The program included multiple long-term exhibitions in Mexico, Moscow, Shanghai, Stockholm, Beijing, Rome and Casablanca. In 2013 was selected and exhibited worldwide by Eurochannel in Europe, Asia and America.

CRU/RAW represents his last feature length documentary work. This film took almost a decade to be produced. The narrative includes content shot on institutions such as the Tribunal, the Hospital, the University, the Police, and the Prison.

Awards
Honour Mention, Avanca International Film Festival, July 2018
Best Documentary, Bragacine Independent Film Festival, Bracara Augusta Award, 2010 Portugal
Minhoto Cinema Best Film, Filminho Minho International Film Festival, 2010 Portugal
Honourable Mention, Tui International Documentary Film Festival, 2006 Pontevedra, Spain
Best Spanish Feature City of Madrid Award, Madrid International Documentary Film Festival, 2005 Spain
Best Director, Festival Internacional Independente de Braga – Braga Cine,2005 Portugal
Best Feature film, Figueira da Foz International Film Festival, 1999 Portugal
International Press Award, Figueira da Foz International Film Festival, 1999 Portugal
Honour Mention, Famalicão International Video and Film Festival, 2001 Portugal

A magical, vivid and poetic exploration of damaged human relationships. Nine passengers on a train must confront their fears, solitude and emotional emptiness.

Mother and son, running away from an abusing husband and father. A young couple about to became parents. A little girl going to school. A stressed business man. A broken hearted girl. All together in a train journey, telling the life story of an old couple. “Never seek anything outside yourself, everything lies in your own heart” is what describes this timeless journey, where these characters carry a heavy luggage on their shoulders: their life stories. A luggage full of pain, betrayal, angst, impotence to change, search for love, moments of happiness, hopelessness and, always last, hope.