Mirabal: Um Foco de Resistência(2022)

Moment of Contact(en)

An exploration of potential extraterrestrial encounters, centered on a series of events in 1996 when citizens of Varginha, Brazil, reported seeing one or more strange creatures and a UFO crash.

The Happiest Man in the World(pt)

An intimate portrait of one of the most loved footballers; Ronaldinho. This documentary looks at his childhood in Brazil, his breakthrough to professional football and his journey to Europe including the ground-breaking years with Barcelona. We hear from his family, teammates and peers in a truly heart-warming story of one of the games greats.

The Bowmakers(en)

This documentary film explores the world of the bow and the extraordinary masters who make them. The bow is the Cinderella of the orchestra—the overworked and overshadowed ally to its more glamorous partners. Few people, even among lovers of classical music, think of the bow as an instrument in its own right, but players of stringed instruments see them differently. To musicians, the bow is as essential to expressing the soul of the music as the violin or cello. The film follows the journey of the “silent servant” of the music world—from the workshops of the virtuosos of the trade, to the birthplace of the bow in France, and to Brazil, home to the imperiled tree from which the world’s finest bows are made.

Piripkura(pt)

The last two surviving members of the Piripkura people, a nomadic tribe in the Mato Grosso region of Brazil, struggle to maintain their indigenous way of life amidst the region's massive deforestation. Living deep in the rainforest, Pakyî and Tamandua live off the land relying on a machete, an ax, and a torch lit in 1998.

Favela on Blast(en)

For 20 years, a subculture has emerged in Brazil under society's radar. It is the culture surrounding 'funk carioca', a musical rhythm which mixes the American electronic funk of the 1980s with the most diverse influences of Brazilian music. 'Baile funk' is one of the most interesting musical movements in the world, but it comes from what is at times one of the most violent and poorest places in the world: the slums of Rio de Janeiro (favelas). This music is the personalization of the raw element. Bombastic rhythms coming from the American Miami Bass and samples are fused with powerful rap vocals using Brazilian slang. This documentary tells stories of sex, love, poverty, and pride among Rio's marginalized people. They have their own language, style, and heroes. It's a film that's fast, heavy, and violent like the city itself.

Dissidents(en)

An artist's sculpture is burnt down, a protester is charged with a criminal case, and a democracy movement is violently attacked. In the United States, three Chinese dissidents fight for democracy against a superpower through art, petition, and grassroots organizing, but not even exile is safe.

Favela Government(en)

Brazil's "Red Command" drug cartel is considered a plague by the government. But for the people of the favelas they control, Red Command *is* the government. They’re the de facto leadership of the area. The gang has taken over the role of the authorities in their shanty towns, where the state has long abandoned them. Away Days got special access to the Rio favelas, hanging out out with young foot-soldiers, speaking to commanders, and seeing how civilians live between the gangs and the equally violent police militias.

O Retorno da Terra Tupinambá(pt)

An Invisible Victim: The Eliza Samudio Case(pt)

A star goalkeeper threatens a woman who is pregnant with his child. Her pleas for help go unanswered in the shadow of his fame — then tragedy strikes.

Mariner of the Mountains(fr)

Using his personal background, Brazilian Karim Aïnous invites the audience to follow/discover an incredible journey through space and time, with an original and usually unknown prism/aspect : The strong bound between Algeria and Brazil, two countries with political and revolutionary strikes that mould their evolution.

Amazônia, A Nova Minamata?(pt)

The House of the Dead(pt)

Bubu is a poet who has been committed to state institutions for the insane twelve times. He challenges the meaning of hospital-jails, hybrid institutions which sentence the insane to life imprisonment. The poem "The House of the Dead" was written during the filming of the documentary and reveals the forgotten deaths that occur in these judicial asylums. There are three stories in three acts of death. Jaime, Antonio, and Almerindo are anonymous men, considered dangers to society, whose punishment is the tragedy of suicide, the unending cycle of being committed to the asylum, or surviving life imprisonment in the house of the dead. Bubu is the narrator of his own life and also of his own destiny-death in the asylum.

Song for My Children(id)

An elderly choir group brings back erased violent history by singing songs that were written in prison and have been silenced for more than 50 years.

Billie Eilish: Live at Lollapalooza Brazil 2023(en)

Billie Eilish live at Lollapalooza Brasil, at Autódromo de Interlagos, in São Paulo, on March 24th, 2023.

Memórias de Izidora(pt)

Let's Do It!(en)

“Let’s Do It!” is a story about how a national cleanup campaign in a small European country grew into an ambitious global environmental movement. The idea spread far and wide, bringing about new wave of civic activism in many countries. However, even good initiatives can hit rough spots. The important thing is not to lose hope. This documentary captures the passion to change the world over the course of 10 years, culminating in World Clean-Up Day in 2018. The movie also showcases how grass-root initiatives can grow and subside and how some ambitions can be defeated only to give rise to even more ambitious ones.

Beautiful Brazil(en)

We start in Rio de Janeiro, with the statue of Cristo Redentor on Mount Corcovado, the avenue along the beach, the beauty of an historic city, and the landmark, Sugarloaf. Brazil's 47 million people celebrate racial diversity. From the Copacabana, we travel 40 miles to a resort, Quitandinha, where President Truman spoke. Then it's on to Sao Paulo, a modern, industrial city, and finally to the spectacular waterfalls of Iguazu on the border between Brazil and Argentina.

Ableism in São Paulo(pt)

Through intimate stories and day-to-day routines we get a naturalistic glimpse into the lives of individuals with disabilities in the bustling urban landscape of São Paulo. The film captures personal moments and how modern societies confront (or fail to confront) ableism and inclusion.

Free Chol Soo Lee(en)

On June 3, 1973, a man was murdered in a busy intersection of San Francisco’s Chinatown as part of an ongoing gang war. Chol Soo Lee, a 20-year-old Korean immigrant who had previous run-ins with the law, was arrested and convicted based on flimsy evidence and the eyewitness accounts of white tourists who couldn’t distinguish between Asian features. Sentenced to life in prison, Chol Soo Lee would spend years fighting to survive behind bars before journalist K.W. Lee took an interest in his case. The intrepid reporter’s investigation would galvanize a first-of-its-kind pan-Asian American grassroots movement to fight for Chol Soo Lee’s freedom, ultimately inspiring a new generation of social justice activists.

Madonna: The Celebration Tour in Rio(en)

Madonna celebrates her four-decade career in a special concert for over 1.6 million people at the Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro.