The Circuit

by Ed Meza
As for the all-important international star wattage at this year’s fest, Viggo Mortensen, who toplines Third Reich drama “Good” from Brazilian helmer Vicente Amorim, showed up for a Tuesday press conference wearing a Flamengo Football Club shirt (one of Rio’s four major soccer clubs). Mortensen, who spent his childhood in Venezuela and Argentina, spoke fluent Spanish to local reporters. (Amorim, a big Flamengo supporter, is the son of Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim.) “Good,” a U.K.-German coproduction, unspools Wednesday as the fest’s closing film.

Bill Pullman made a surprise appearance for the premiere of Jennifer Lynch’s “Surveillance.” Pullman is in town shooting Jonathan Nossiter’s “Gringos of Rio” with Charlotte Rampling.

Meanwhile, a new pitching event organized by Steve Solot, former head of the Motion Picture Assn.’s Latin American office, won praise from Latin American filmmakers.

Backed by Spain’s Fundacion de Investigacion Audiovisual, support org Red IDEA and the University of Miami’s School of Communication, the Latin American Feature Film Project aims to discover new talent while creating business opportunities that contribute to the growth of the Latin American film industry.
The program invited 12 filmmakers to pitch their projects to a jury of international film execs.

Rosane Lima and Pindorama Filmes’ “S.A.A.R.A. -- São Jorge e o Passaro Celestial,” a story set in a Rio district largely inhabited by Jewish and Arab residents, won first prize – a trip to Spain for business discussions with potential European investors and partners.

In second place was Cecilia Amado’s planned adaptation of her grandfather Jorge Amado’s classic 1937 novel “Capitães de Areia” (Captains of the Sand), about a gang of street children living on the beach in Salvador da Bahia in northeastern Brazil, which won $8,000 from the University of Miami; Ondamax Films is producing.

On a final note, taking place amidst the world’s economic crisis, it’s not surprising that at least some international distribs at the fest felt gloomy. Many veteran sellers feel blinded by the ongoing digital revolution and fear that great tectonic shifts are upon us, soon to change forever the face of international distribution.

Leave it to a youthful and energetic Rio company to take the proverbial bull by the horns. MovieMobz isn’t waiting for the end of days and has moved to the forefront of digital distribution, hooking up 200 screens around the country to a digital network and serving as an arthouse distributor, even booking pics from its fast-growing catalogue according to the wishes of its online users, even those in remote towns.

At this year’s fest it picked up three screeners, including “Heridas”; Debra Pascali-Bonaro's U.S. documentary “Orgasmic Birth,” about the benefits, and pleasure, of natural childbirth; and Daniel Judge's doc "They Killed Sister Dorothy,” a look at the murder of an activist n

by Ed Meza
With its stunning vistas, beautiful beaches and lovely residents, Rio de Janeiro poses a serious challenge to its own film festival.

Yet in spite of -- or perhaps because of -- the city and its tropical groove, the relaxed and immensely enjoyable Rio de Janeiro Intl. Film Festival remains one of South America’s premiere fests, with strong focuses on domestic as well as Latin American cinema and top selections from around the globe that make up the 350 films showing in the more than 20 sections.

No fest is perfect and Rio has its share of problems. This year the strict laws regulating municipal elections prohibited the festival from setting up its headquarters on Copacabana Beach, as had long been the tradition. The late-minute ban sent organizers scrambling, although they managed to find a great new location in downtown at the last minute. The vast new pavilion offered plenty of space, but poor wiring in that part of town resulted in wonky Internet connections that bedeviled staffers, bloggers and fest attendees alike. Long distances between hotels, cinemas and the fest center didn't help. But no one gets their undies in a bunch. What could turn into a major crisis at others fests is taken in stride, with laid-back humor and contagious smiles.

Among the most talked about local pics in Rio this year was “A Festa da Menina Morta” (The Dead Girl’s Feast), pictured below, the directing debut of Brazilian thesp Matheus Nachtergaele (“City of God”), which screened this year in Cannes
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The pic, about a young man from a troubled family who has been exalted to the position of a saint in a small Amazonian village, examines issues of blind faith, religious fanaticism and the opportunism of its manipulative perpetrators.

From neighboring Colombia, Roberto Flores Pietro's Colombian drama “Heridas” (Wounds) looks at the ongoing conflict in the country, following an orphaned peasant girl and a married couple who find themselves caught in the crossfire between left-wing guerrillas and right-wing paramilitaries.

Flores said he felt the need to make the film “to not only try to help people understand what is going on in Colombia, but also to help ourselves understand what is happening there. The irrationality and barbarity is utterly incomprehensible. There is great polarization in the world, but in Colombia it’s absolute.”

Other notable screeners included Fernanda Tornaghi and Ricardo Bruno’s “Reinhas” (Queen of Brazil), a documentary about a young man pursuing his dream of becoming Miss Brazil Gay, and “Favela on Blast,” which delves into the musical subculture of Rio’s favelas and the bombastic rhythms inspired by the sound of Miami Bass.

Directed by Leandro HBL and American music producer and DJ Wesley Pentz, the pic looks at the artists that have shaped modern funk carioca, a music characterized by its celebration of sex and commentary on poverty and violence, and offers a close-up look at the pounding dance of copulation that gives a whole new meaning to “dirty dancing.”

The crime and poverty that afflict favelas have long defined Brazilian cinema, but that trend looks like it’s finally coming to an end.

Local producers and international distributors say they’ve had enough of favela shootouts and are eager to see more of what this beautiful country, and incredibly cool cities like Rio, have to offer.  The fact that the premiere party for “Favela on Blast” was held in a favela venue near Copacabana beach underscores the fast-changing times.

Sandro Fiorin of L.A.-based FiGa Films and a Rio native, had a blast at the baile, and pointed out that attending a favela funkathon would have been unthinkable for middle-class kids a few years ago.

With hostels, hilltop hotels and Internet cafes now catering to tourists and offering the best views of the city, the favelas have long since opened for business, signaling perhaps an erosion of the cultural and economic barriers that have long separated the various parts of the city.    

Speaking of which, favela kids are getting their own chance at filmmaking thanks to Alice Bragg, a founding member of the London-based volunteer org World Film Collective. Bragg is teaching a group of children, aged 10 to 13, how to develop and make movies using mobile phones at the Casarão Cultural Centre, a refurbished house in the Morro dos Prazeres favela above Rio’s picturesque district of Santa Teresa.

“It’s great to see kids look at their lives and tell their stories in their own voice,” says Bragg. “We want to give them the opportunity to express themselves in their own way.”

Videos, which also include works from the org’s workshops in South Africa and the Palestinian Territory, are showcased on www.worldfilmcollective.com.

by Ed Meza
One foreign documentary has managed to titillate Rio fest-goers like no other, even days before its official premiere on Saturday.

German filmmaker Jens Hoffmann (pictured between Cleonice Comino and Ida Martins) wishes he had brought extra "9 to 5 - Days in Porn" t-shirts, so great has been the demand from cineastes and fest staffers alike.

Produced by Munich-based Brazilian Cleonice Comino and sold internationally by fellow Brasileira Ida Martins of Cologne-based Media Luna Entertainment, “9 to 5 - Days in Porn” is a rarity in Germany – a completely independent production without a cent of subsidy coin from the country’s normally generous film boards. The film offers a stark and objective look at the lives of porn stars and producers and the intense demands of their work. Despite its title and the prurient fascination it’s generated, “9 to 5” is anything but pornographic, says Hoffmann.

Hoffmann’s initial cut of the film, which is the one screening here, examines the porn industries in California'’s San Fernando Valley and the Czech capital Prague, but he’s in the process of making a shorter version that will focus solely on the American biz.

The subject matter and the title made it impossible for Hoffmann and Comino to receive a grant from Bavaria’s subsidy office, the FFF. “Just mentioning the word ‘porn’ made the wall rise. We were constantly explaining to people, we are not making porn; we are making a movie about porn. There’s a difference.”

Hoffmann says he was inspired by photographers such as Larry Sultan, whose book “The Valley” examines the transformation of middle-class suburban homes into stage sets for adult films.

It was a hard sell for potential coproducers, however. “At the beginning I had a treatment and a trailer that I shopped around in Germany looking for a coproduction and many people were interested. They agreed to coproduce and give us money, but they wanted that victimized Russian girl who’s getting traded around. All the stereotypes -- again! We didn’t see it like that. It’s not prostitution. That’s not what we wanted to shoot. And that’s when they all pulled out.”

Martins says the film challenges preconceived notions of the porn industry. “It doesn’t fulfill any expectations of the cliché. Jens’ work is very distant and observing. It’s impossible to watch an adult film in the same way after watching this film.”

Hoffmann spent a long time convincing his subjects of his sincerity and winning their trust. "The concept was to have a longer period of shooting so that you have a development of character guaranteed. That’s what I thought was the interesting part.”

In the end, Hoffmann invested his own money and managed to get support from industry giant ARRI, which offered post-production services. “9 to 5” went on to screen at the Montreal World Film Festival in August to packed theaters, attracting hundreds of viewers at the event and piquing the interest of major buyers like Canada’s Mongrel Media, which picked up all rights, and HBO’s Latin American pay TV channel LAPTV.

Hoffmann, who is heading for Southeast Asia for his next project, began his career shooting outdoor sports like mountain climbing and worked with German ski movie maestro Willy Bogner on the 2001 IMAX pic “Ski to the Max” before launching his own company, F24 Film. Since then he’s gone on to direct a number of award-winning documentaries, including 2006’s “Fatima’s Hand” and, more recently, “20 Seconds of Joy,” both about Norwegian BASE jumper and free skier Karina Hollekim.

by Ed Meza
Sony Pictures Classics has picked up Latin American rights to Rio screener “Easy Virtue,” the 1920s-set romantic comedy with dynamite disco tracks from Aussie helmer Stephan Elliot of "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" fame.

Starring Ben Barnes, Jessica Biel and Kristin Scott Thomas, pic is loosely based on the play by Noel Coward about a British aristocrat who falls for a brash and highflying American divorcee, much to the chagrin of his family.  It is a long-awaited comeback for Elliot, who was forced to put his filmmaking career on hold for nearly a decade after suffering a near fatal ski accident in France.  

by Ed Meza
Rio-based film and TV powerhouse Conspiracao is looking to expand its operations abroad and, equipped with Brazilian tax coin, eager to board international coproductions across the pond.

Conspiracaos current lineup includes Breno Silveira's tale of star-crossed lovers, "Once Upon a Time in Rio," (pictured above) which recently screened in Toronto.

Company exec Leonardo Monteiro de Barros (pictured) set up shop in Hamburg, Germany, earlier this year in order to spearhead Conspiracao's international push.  The company is finishing up its first production shot abroad, the upcoming "The March of the Living," a documentary by Jessica Sanders ("After Innocence") that follows an annual march in Poland from Auschwitz to Birkenau held in remembrance of the Holocaust.

While Conspiracao produced that film 100%, the group is now looking to partner with international producers and prepared to cover up to 20% of the budget on projects using Brazilian tax incentives.

"We dont have to shoot in Brazil, but we do need a Brazilian element in the film, such as a director or star," says Barros, who is currently reviewing a dozen potential projects, most of them from Spain and Germany, with the goal of greenlighting two or three a year.

Currently in the works is a historical adventure-drama about 17th-century poet Lope de Vega, which has Conspiracao partner and helmer Andrucha Waddington ("House of Sand") set to direct.

At home, Conspiracao has also begun offering production services to international producers looking to shoot in Brazil, such as Aurelio de Laurentiis Filmauro, which recently lensed its upcoming Christmas comedy "Natale a Rio de Janeiro" here.

Other Conspiracao films include Lula Buarque de Hollanda and Carolina Jabor's Cannes screener "The Mystery of Samba," and upcoming comedy "My Best Friends Wife," which hits Brazilian theaters in November via Disney.

by Ed Meza
Former Brazilian culture minister and renowned musician Gilberto Gil brought a philosophical, often esoteric view to the question of adapting Brazil’s legal framework to meet the challenges of the fast-evolving Internet, or as it’s now known, Web 2.0, at a discussion held at the RioMarket on Tuesday.

Following a lengthy and detailed presentation by local media lawyers and reps from Google and MySpace, who laid out a strong case for the need to upgrade Brazilian law to better cope with the growing demands of user-generated content on the Internet, the animated Gil injected the dry discussion with lively irreverence.

“I feel like a dinosaur here after hearing all these people talking about this issue. Like someone from the past.” Gil sang about the web and the evolution of communication in “Pela Internet,” a track on his innovative 1997 album “Quanta.”

“It’s been 10 years since I first discussed the possibilities of the web in my song. We were far from the kind of interactivity that has spread so fast since.”

Launching into a long and rambling discourse, the artist-politician touched on such diverse topics as the human soul, the relationship between man and machine, the pioneering filmmakers who moved from the East Coast to the West Coast to found Hollywood in "an act of piracy" against the domination of Thomas Edison, the U.S. elections, and friend and fellow musician Caetano Veloso, whose website he praised.

Gil reiterated his oft-heard call for greater flexibility of artists’ rights, saying there was a gray area between what was legal and illegal and an increasing complexity that was defining technological development: “We are facing a new life, a new world.”

Indeed, Pedro Less, who oversees governmental issues and public politics for Google in Latin America, pointed out that users upload 13 hours of video a minute on average onto YouTube – in terms of length, “that equals about 57,000 new full-length films hitting theaters every week.”

Fellow panelist Dirceu Santa Rosa of Brazilian law firm Veirano Advogados, added that current legislation was “not in sync with the technological level of Web 2.0. “In Brazil, it may soon be possible to watch French and American TV on the Internet.”

Mauro Falsetti of MySpace Brazil added that the social networking site went beyond what the law demands and bases its local regulatory guidelines on the U.S. Digital Millennium Copyright Act.

by Ed Meza
The Rio de Janeiro Intl. Film Festival got down to business on Monday with the start of the RioMarket.

While the fest has become a huge hit among the city’s moving-going public - organizers are expecting to sell a total of some 300,000 tickets - the RioMarket offers attending industryites a window into the Brazilian market.  In a sign of growing cooperation between Brazilian filmmakers and European partners, U.K. Film Council reps Isabel Davis and Himesh Kar were on hand to discuss greater cooperation between British and Brazilian government agencies as well as the possible development of bilateral agreements between the two countries.

Fest organizers are enthusiastic about bringing Brazilian and European filmmakers together, and Europeans appear more than happy to make the flight across the Atlantic cinema, samba and caphirinas.

At a Sunday night dinner honoring Italian sibling duo Vittorio and Paolo Taviani, Ilda Santiago, the fest’s executive director, praised Italian and European filmmakers and their participation in Rio, underscoring their immense impact to cinema worldwide but also to Brazil. “Having you here is a dream come true.”

Celebrating its 10th year, the fest kicked off Sept. 25 in an all-new Pavilion. Instead of its traditional tent location at the Copacabana beach, the fest center is now housed in one of Rio’s oldest buildings, a warehouse dating back to 1871, now the Centro Cultural da Acao e Cidadania.

Twice the size of the Copacabana tent, the vast new Pavilion is equipped with state-of-the-art technology and also houses the RioMarket, the Cine Encontro venue for panel discussions and presentations and the Cine Mobile Nokia space set up to showcase cell phone productions, plus a bar and restaurant.

The move is part of an effort to promote Rio’s inner-city renewal program.

In one of the day’s more heated discussions, Jorge Peregrino, Paramount Pictures Intl.’s senior VP of distribution for Latin America and the Caribbean, took issue with a recent study by Rio-based research group MMGA that found the design of theaters had a strong influence on the public’s cinema-going habits. Unlike much of the rest of Latin America, which has seen impressive box office growth in recent years, Brazil has lost ground due to a number of factors, generally attributed to piracy and poor marketing among independent distribs.
Despite a slew of international award-winning films in recent years, the country has seen the market share of domestic films shrink, with local pics making up only 7% in the first seven months of 2008. Last year that figure reached 11.5% compared to 21.4% in 2003.