Cinema He made his film debut in 1997 in the short film
Menos Nove, directed by Rita Nunes. Soon after, in 1998, he participated in the short film ''It's Just a Minute'' directed by Pedro Caldas and written by
Jacinto Lucas Pires. In 2002 he joined the cast of
The Uncertainty Principal by
Manoel de Oliveira. In 2007 he won the Portuguese Golden Globe for Best Actor for the films
O Mistério da Estrada de Sintra by Jorge Paixão da Costa and
Call Girl by
António-Pedro Vasconcelos. In 2012 he played Apeles Espanca in the film
Florbela directed by Vicente Alves do Ó and produced by Ukbar Filmes, a role that earned him the nomination for best actor in the first edition of the Sophia awards from the Portuguese Cinema Academy and the Best Actor CinEuphoria award. In the same year he joined the cast of
A Estrada 47, a Brazilian, German, Italian and Portuguese co-production directed by Vicente Ferraz. In 2015 he participates in the international production
Powder and Gold directed by Felix Limardo and produced by William Fay. The following year he plays Lucas Mateus in
Refrigerantes e Canções de Amor, a film written by
Nuno Markl and directed by Luis Galvão Teles. More recently, in 2022, he co-starred in the short film
An Avocado Pit, w ritten and directed by Ary Zara, which was on the
Oscar’s shortlist of 15 pre-nominated short films. A project with great international visibility, which received the support of actor
Elliot Page's production company and was widely acclaimed by the trans community, all over the world.
Theater In 1991 he made his debut at
Teatro da Cornucópia in
Amo-te by Almeno Gonçalves. Between 1993 and 1994 he was part of the group of actors of the
Passage del Terror a very successful attraction at the
Lisbon Amusement Park. In 1996 he joined the cast of
Aqui Está Ela, by
Nathalie Sarraute, directed by
Diogo Dória. In 1997 he began his work with Artistas Unidos, with
Prometeu I, II, III by
Jorge Silva Melo, with whom he returned to work the following year in
O Fim ou Tende Misericórdia de Nós, then in
Downfall of the Egotist Johann Fatzer by
Bertolt Brecht, in 2000,
O Navio dos Negros as the protagonist, in 2001, and
Quartet by
Heiner Müller, in 2016.
Silva Melo becomes a decisive mentor in his career as an actor and will shape the way he practices his craft throughout his career. In 1999 he joined the cast of
Peaches a very successful comedy directed by
José Wallenstein at
Teatro Aberto. In 2000, he worked with director
Solveig Nordlund in the show
Night is Mother to the Day by
Lars Noren and, in the same year, he participated in
Boca Cheia de Pássaros, a dance theater show at
Teatro Nacional D. Maria II, staged by Fernanda Lapa and Francisco Camacho. In 2004 he participated in
Capricho directed by Lúcia Sigalho. The following year he worked for the first time with director Tim Carroll in
The Tempest at Teatro Nacional São Luiz. He returned to work with this director as the protagonist of
Peter Shaffer's
Amadeus, with
Diogo Infante, at
Teatro Nacional D. Maria II, a role for which he received the
Portuguese Golden Globe for Best Theater Actor in 2011. In 2014, he once again starred in the show
Pedro Páramo by
Juan Rulfo, directed by
Miguel Seabra, at Teatro Meridional, which earned him a nomination for Best Theater Actor at the
Portuguese Golden Globes. Between 2018 and 2023 he stages and performs the monologue
Every Brillian Thing by
Duncan MacMillan, produced by Hugo Nóbrega from H2N, with scene and actors’ direction by Dora Bernardo. The show was a huge success, having toured the country for 4 years with more than 280 sold-out shows and around 30,000 spectators. This project earned him several awards, including the Solo Show Award by the 2020 Theater Guide, integrating the list of 30 best shows of 2019 by Comunidade Cultura e Arte and having won the 2021 Marketeer Award in the Art and Culture category.
Television He became famous for his portrayal of Joca in the series
O Fura Vidas (1999–2001). Between 2008 and 2011 he participated in the series
Liberdade 21, produced by SP television and directed by Patrícia Sequeira and Sérgio Graciano. I n 2009 he joined the cast of the mini-series
Conexão, directed by
Leonel Vieira on
RTP. Between 2010 and 2012 he participated in the Canadian series
Living in Your Car, directed by
David Steinberg, among others. Soon after, he played the role of Xavier in the RTP series
Os Filhos do Rock (2013–2014). In 2019 he joined the cast of
Sul, an
RTP series produced by Arquipélago Filmes and directed by Ivo Ferreira. In 2021 he plays the Minister of Defense in the Netflix series
Glória, directed by
Tiago Guedes. Recently, in 2023 he joined the cast of the RTP series
Emília, directed by Filipa Amaro. In 2024 he plays the role of Doctor in the
RTP series
O Americano directed by Ivo Ferreira. In 2025, he will participate in
Projecto Global, a series by Ivo Ferreira about the FP25, and in
Cold Haven, a Portuguese and Icelandic co-production, filmed in both countries. ==Selected filmography==