Curiosidades

The actor who plays the role of life coach Paulo Prazeres is married with Beatriz Batarda, since 2013. This personal relationship added an interesting layer to their characters' interactions. Although they both prefer to keep their relationship out of the spotlight, it was clear during filming how their mutual trust helped shape more intense and intimate scenes between their characters. In some interviews, Bruno mentions that he wrote Sara inspired by Beatriz and her ability to portray roles with great dramatic depth. He saw the series as an opportunity to explore a satirical and comedic side of acting, moving Batarda out of her more traditionally tragic and intellectual territory. In a way, their relationship lent a unique authenticity to the storyline, which, ironically, also addresses the closeness and discomfort of overlapping professional and personal relationships.

Beatriz Batarda, who plays the main character, mentioned in an interview how the show allowed her to explore humor in ways she rarely had in her dramatic work. She described the experience as "liberating," particularly the chance to laugh at herself and at the public's often serious perception of her career. Playing with this stereotype of always being "serious and melancholic" felt like a humorous form of self-satire. Bruno Nogueira, one of the creators and screenwriters, explained that creating Sara was a way to explore Portuguese television with a hint of sarcasm. The concept of an actress who suddenly loses the ability to cry and dives into a strange new world (like soap operas) seemed like a perfect foundation to explore the tension between "arthouse" cinema and mainstream TV entertainment. Both he and Marco Martins aimed to craft a narrative blending comedy and tragedy, provoking the audience to laugh at the things often taken too seriously in the arts. Another fascinating point is that, by poking fun at their own insecurities, the actors contributed to a "thesis" on the biases of the acting world and the pressures of maintaining a "pure" artistic image. Rita Blanco, for example, plays a character who criticizes the world of soap operas, despite having worked in them. This self-criticism turned the filming process into a fun and self-reflective experience, with both cast and crew questioning artistic recognition and laughing at the industry's contradictions.