Pao Paixao has been working for a number of years as an actor. In 2005, he decided to devote himself to making films and videos which still make up an essential part of his installations. In 2006, he was selected for the Berlinale Talent Campus (Germany). His films have been selected for the Tempere Film Festival, the Festival of New Cinema (Canada) and the Max Ophüls Festival in Saarbrücken. He won the award for best short film at the OPEN CINEMA Festival in Saint Petersburg and at the Opere Nuove Festival Bolzano in 2011.