Esther, born to a Jewish Orthodox family, left religion and fell in love with the usher of the Lisbon Cinema, which operated in the basement of the lepers’ house in Lisbon, Portugal from 1963 to 1973 (during the Salazar dictatorship it served as the underground nerve center for freedom fighters, right under the regime’s nose). Thanks to her love for the usher, she also fell in love with cinema, and was consequently banished from her home.
