“There are things we know, and there are things unknown and in between, there are doors” – A. Huxley. Portal Shades takes its inspiration from doorways and portals, which sparked concept and choreography director Francesca Abela Tranter’s imagination. This, coupled with Dante’s narrative tells the story of a journey from hell to paradise in search of the afterlife and Charles Paul Azzopardi’s photography on Maltese Doors. Four sections have been created in collaboration with four dancers and composer Christopher Benstead’s original score for this film. In ancient Egyptian architecture, a false door was considered a wall decoration that looked like a window; it was common in tombs and represented a gate to the afterlife. Dante’s journey in search of the afterlife 700 years later continues to be our human need in search for justice, power, peace, and temperance. As the performers journey outside these doors and portals, they explore what lies behind them.