Since the 1960s, Portabella always maintained a political commitment with all those movements against the Franco dictatorship that supported individual and collective democratic liberties.  In 1977, he was elected senator in the first democratic elections and he participated in the writing of the present day Spanish Constitution.  He has presided over the Fundación Alternativassince 2001.

As a filmmaker Pere  Portabella has been a relevant presence in the Spanish film world for the last fifty years.

With Films 59, his production company, he fostered some of the most emblematic films in the history of Spanish cinema.  “Los Golfos” by Carlos Saura (1959), “El Cochecito” by Marco Ferreri (1960) and “Viridiana” by Luis Buñuel (1961). He directs his own creations combining a heritage of avant-garde culture with breakaway forms of language. His films, Vampir (1970) and Umbracle (1972), constitute radical interventions in artistic and cinematographic institutions.    A  long interval ensues between Informe General in 1976 and his return to his work as film maker and producer at present, during which he enters the political/institutional world during the "Transition" period in Spain.

 In 2001, his films became part of the artistic collection of the MACBA.   In 2002, he was the only Spanish artist invited to participate in Documenta 11 in Kassel.  In 2003, the Pompidou Center organized a homage for Portabella and acquired one of his films for its collection.  Philadelphia, Baltimore, Chicago and New York have all organized exhibits and screenings of his films.  The Buenos Aires Film Festival and the 42nd "Mostra Internacional del Nuevo Cinema" of Pesaro have both programmed retrospective exhibits in 2006.
 
His latest film, The Silence Before Bach, selected for the Orizzonti Section of the 64th. "Mostra Internacional de Arte Cinematográfico de Venecia" will premier in the fall of 2007 in the MoMA in New York, as part of a retrospective exhibit of his work as a whole.