Afro-Brazilian perspectives

Cinema Of Brazil: Afro-Brazilian Perspectives
Thursday 9 - Wednesday 15 October 2008
Barbican film
www.barbican.org.uk/film
Cinema Hotline: 0845 120 7527

Barbican Film, in partnership with the Embassy of Brazil, presents the 2nd Brazilian Film Festival from Thursday 9 to Wednesday 15 October 2008, this year celebrating the nation’s foremost Afro-Brazilian actors and directors, intellectuals and musicians, 120 years on from the abolition of slavery in Brazil.

From films scrutinising the legacy of slavery in Brazil to this year’s Golden Bear winner at the Berlin Film Festival Elite Squad, landmark features and documentaries present a diverse picture of Afro-Brazilian history, culture and the social realities faced by many black Brazilians today.

Thursday 9 October, 7.00pm
Opening Gala: Maré, Our Love Story (Maré, nossa história de amor)
(Brazil/France/Uruguay 2007 Dir. Lúcia Murat 105min)
Plus Q&A with director/journalist Lúcia Murat
A vivacious retelling of Romeo and Juliet through hip hop, funk and samba rhythms, Maré, Our Love Story is a Brazilian West Side Story set in Maré, a favela that’s home to 140,000 of Rio’s inhabitants. Maré has long been controlled by opposing gangs of drug traffickers but the community finds a middle ground in the local dance school, where the star crossed lovers Analídia (Cristina Lago), and Jonatha (Vinícius D’Black) meet and fall for each other, despite being related to rival gang bosses. Illustrating the incongruous existence of artistic enterprise in the often hostile and violent setting of the favelas, Maré, Our Love Story’s energy won it a place in the 2007 Berlin Film Festival and the Special Jury Prize at the Rio International Film Festival.
Friday 10 October, 6.15pm

Madame Satã
(Brazil/France 2002 Dir. Karim Ainouz 105 min)
Plus Q&A with actor Lázaro Ramos
A flamboyant and fiercely proud drag queen with a hair-trigger temper, João Francisco dos Santos was a legend in the clubs and prisons of Lapa, Rio’s Red Light District in the 1920’s and 30’s. Exotic on stage but also a tough guy on the street, João’s fierce reputation brought him from childhood slavery in northern Brazil to celebrity in carnival capital Rio, earning him great notoriety and 30 years in jail to boot, 10 of them for murder. With strikingly rich visuals, actor Lázaro Ramos’ riveting portrayal of Madame Satã’s extravagant life made the film a global festival hit in 2002.
Friday 10 October, 8.45pm

Elite Squad (Tropa de Elite)
(Brazil 2007 Dir. José Padilha 118 min)
Hailed as this year’s City of God and winner of the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, Elite Squad is a hard-hitting look at the controversial policing of the Rio’s favelas during the 1990’s. Captain Nascimento (Wagner Moura) is an officer with BOPE, the tough troop brought in to clean up after the corruption-riddled regular force, but with thoughts of his wellbeing and that of his family in mind, he wants to leave. Meanwhile student Matias (Andre Ramiro) is training as a police cadet, motivated by his belief in the just deployment of the law, which is soon put to the test when a fierce battle explodes between slum drug lords. Despite going some way to questioning the troop’s military machismo, Elite Squad’s brutal finale shows there are no easy solutions to the vicious stalemate between police and gangs.
Saturday 11 October, 2.00pm

What Is It Worth? (Quante vale ou é por quilo?)
(Brazil 2005 Dir. Sérgio Bianchi 110 min)
Plus panel discussion with director Sérgio Bianchi, actor Zózimo Bulbul and writer/journalist Zuenir Ventura
Loosely based on a short story by Machado de Assis, master of 19th century Brazilian fiction, Sérgio Bianchi’s politically provocative film traces a parallel between the era of slavery in Brazil and contemporary Brazilian society. Bianchi weaves a powerful story from the lives of characters in both eras, often using the same actors in both contexts to highlight social and economic parallels and question the degree to which social structures in Brazilian society have really changed since colonial times.
The film will be followed by a panel discussion with director Sérgio Bianchi, actor Zózimo Bulbul and writer/journalist Zuenir Ventura on the legacy of slavery in Brazil and how its story has been recounted in the nation’s cinema.
Saturday 11 October, 6.00pm

Abolition (Abolição)
(Brazil 1988 Dir. Zózimo Bulbul 150 min)
With introduction by actor/director Zózimo Bulbul
Made by renowned director and celebrated actor Zózimo Bulbul in 1988 to celebrate the centenary of the abolition of slavery in Brazil, Abolition takes an often startling look at the contemporary situation of black Brazilians. Asking musicians, politicians, activists, ambassadors, social workers, sport stars, actors, street kids and farmers what the abolition of slavery means to them, the film is an indispensable exploration of the legacy of slavery in today’s multicultural Brazil.
Saturday 11 October, 9.00pm

My Uncle Killed a Guy (Meu tio matou um cara)
(Brazil 2004 Dir. Jorge Furtado 87 min)
With introduction by actor Lázaro Ramos
When his uncle Éder (Lázaro Ramos) confesses to killing his girlfriend’s-ex in self-defence, Duca (Darlan Cunha) suspects all is not what it seems. Determined to discover who his uncle is covering up for, the shy 15-year-old sets out to solve the crime himself, with a little help from his pretty friend Isa (Sophia Reiss). Set in a middle-class Brazilian milieu, My Uncle Killed a Guy is a witty and charming coming-of-age comedy, which also boasts original music from the ‘Brazilian Bob Dylan’, Caetano Veloso.
Sunday 12 October, 4.00pm

My Time is Now (Meu tempo é hoje)
(Brazil 2003 Dir. Izabel Jaguaribe 103 min)
With introduction from screenwriter/journalist Zuenir Ventura
This beautiful documentary explores the life and music of Paulinho da Viola, one of Brazil’s most iconic and sophisticated musicians whose innovative take on samba has influenced Brazilian popular music for decades. In My Time is Now, da Viola reveals his musical influences, masters and friends, as well as providing glimpses into his wonderfully tranquil personal life, where he dabbles in restoring vintage cars, cabinet-making and billiards. A critically acclaimed soundtrack, some tracks for which were recorded during shooting, further enriches this hugely enjoyable film.
Sunday 12 October, 6.30pm

The Coco, The Ring, The Tire and The Lighthouse (O coco, a roda, o pneu e o farol)
(Brazil 2007 Dir. Mariana Fortes 80 min)
With introduction by director Miana Fortes
Director Mariana Fortes explores the tradition of playing the coconut as a musical instrument, as practiced in Olinda, the UNESCO world heritage listed city in the North Eastern region of Brazil. The roots of this custom, as well as an exploration of the characters so devoted to preserving it, are exquisitely captured in this magical documentary.
Sunday 12 October, 8.30pm

Cartola – The Samba Legend (Cartola - música para os olhos)
(Brazil 2007 Dirs. Lírio Ferreira and Hilton Lacerda 85 min)
Rio-born samba legend Angenor de Oliveira was nicknamed Cartola (Portuguese for top hat) because of the hat he wore to protect his hair whilst a construction worker. Cartola transcends the biopic genre to explore, through the life of this celebrated composer and performer, what it means to be “carioca” (a native of Rio de Janeiro) and how Brazilian cultural memory is constructed. An homage to an iconic city, the film blends captivating found footage of Rio carnivals with images of Oliveira’s early performances and recollections of the musician from collaborators and friends.
Monday 13 October, 6.30pm

Ginga: The Soul of Brazilian Football (Ginga: a alma do futebol brasileiro)
(Brazil/USA 2005 Dir. Tocha Alves, Hank Levine and Marcelo Machado 79 min)
An awe-inspiring documentary exploring what makes Brazil one of the greatest footballing nations ever: ‘ginga’, the mysterious, indefinable magical quality of rhythm and movement which sets the Brazilian game apart from the rest. Produced by Fernando Meirelles (City of God, The Constant Gardener) and directed by three up-and-coming young filmmakers, Ginga follows seven young players from a diverse range of social and ethnic backgrounds, providing a glimpse into a passionate and vibrant culture so rooted in dynamic movement that it’s no wonder Brazil produces so many of the world’s greatest footballers.
Monday 13 October, 8.30pm

A Meeting with Milton Santos (Encontro com Milton Santos)
(Brazil 2006 Dir. Silvio Tendler 90 min)
A privileged look at the world through the eyes of Milton Santos (1926-2001), the internationally renowned Afro-Brazilian geographer and intellectual who granted director Silvio Tendler an interview four months before he died. In A Meeting with Milton Santos, the man described as ‘geography’s philosopher’ discusses his views on the importance of respecting difference between people and his belief that an alternative globalisation model could wholly enfranchise all citizens of the world. The film offers a rare chance to see an illustrious presence in 20th century social sciences eloquently elucidating a developing world perspective on the global age.
Tuesday 14 October, 6.30pm

City of Men (Cidade dos Homens)
(Brazil 2007 Dir. Paulo Morelli 106 min)
Produced by City of God director Fernando Meirelles, this companion piece to the 2002 international hit seeks out a human story amongst the chaos of the Rio shantytowns. Lifelong friends Laranjinha (Darlan Cunha) and Acerola (Douglas Silva) are 18 and facing adult decisions: Acerola’s wife wants to move to Sao Paulo, leaving him to care for their baby, while Laranjinha has begun a search for his absentee father. All the while a formidable territorial gang war is escalating around the boys, threatening both their neutrality and their friendship. Cunha and Silva (both non-professionals who starred in City of God) give electrifying performances as young men whose attempts to negotiate their present may jeopardise their futures.
Tuesday 14 October, 8.30pm

Daughters of the Wind (Filhas do Vento)
(Brazil 2005 Dir.Joel Zito Araújo 85 min)
Followed by a Q&A with director Joel Zito Araújo
With an impressive cast of the best Afro-Brazilian actors, Daughters of the Wind chronicles the lives of a family from northeastern Brazil in a film inspired by the popular Latin American telenovelas. Banished from the family home 45 years earlier, Cida (Ruth de Souza) is reunited with sibling Jú (Léa Garcia) at the funeral of her oppressive father Zé das Bicicletas (Milton Gonçalves). In the intervening years Cida has become a successful yet reclusive soap-opera star, whilst Jú has remained at home caring for her father and her children, resting all her hopes for a better future in her talented daughter Dorinha (Danielle Ornellas). But as if to spite her mother, Dorinha looks set to follow in Cida’s footsteps… Veteran Brazilian actors Gonçalves and de Souza turn in commanding performances in this poignant family drama.
Wednesday 15 October, 6.15pm

Xica da Silva
(Brazil 1976 Dir. Carlos Diegues 107 min)
With introduction by director Carlos Diegues and actress Zezé Motta
An extravagant satirical comedy based on the life of the legendary black slave woman and commanding courtesan Xica da Silva, here played by Zezé Motta on fiery form. A diamond rush in the 1700’s transformed Brazil’s interior into a place of fabulous wealth and excess. It is in this unrestrained atmosphere that slave Xica uses her iron will and her unique sexual talent to seduce her way into becoming the unofficial Empress of Brazil, lording over her former masters and gleefully emptying the crown’s treasury.
Wednesday 15 October, 8.30pm

Quilombo (Brazil/France 1984 Dir. Carlos Diegues 119 min)
Followed by Q&A with director Carlos Diegues and star Zezé Motta
Nominated for the Palme d’Or at Cannes, director Carlos Diegues’ Quilombo tells the legendary story of the Republic of Palmares, a community of escaped slaves founded in the 17th century. Described by Diegues as “the first democratic society we know of in the Western hemisphere”, Palmares was a refuge for not only escaped slaves but, Brazil’s Jews and impoverished white farmers. Quilombo follows the rise and fall of the community, vividly and colourfully portraying its key protagonists and their battles with the Portuguese colonial forces. Starring Zezé Motta and Grande Otelo with songs from Gilberto Gil.

www.barbican.org.uk/film Cinema Hotline: 0845 120 7527
Ticket prices:
Standard: £7.50 online (£9.50 offline), Barbican Members £6.50 online (£7.50 full price), Concessions £7.50
Under 15: £4.50
Monday Madness: all tickets £5.50
Special Offer! Book for 3 or more events online and each ticket is reduced to £6.50 (excluding Gala Opening)