I headed straight for my laptop — today is a huge workday, and I realized I had little time left to lose: the three day grace period Columbia Public Schools has implemented for students from April 1 to April 3 in the hopes of promoting health over schoolwork for the moment has merely pushed my deadlines for class assignments closer together. I was determined then, despite my earlier laziness, to get my tasks done so I can relax later.

Following the family history of director Caterina Vasconcelos, Metamorfose dos Pássaros, or Metamorphosis of Birds, is a film of Portugeuse origin, language and culture lined with English subtitles. Focusing...