Elis Regina: Falso Brilhante

Witness here a historical moment of Brazilian music. At the end of the 70’s, Vinícius de Moraes, Toquinho, Tom Jobim and Miúcha took off to Italy, to take part in a TV program called Musicalmente Vinícius (Musically Vinícius). In a casual and intimate atmosphere, the quartet talks and sings songs that define the epoch. Great Bossa Nova classics are presented such as "Aguas de Março", "Samba do Avião", "Wave" and the immortal "Garota de Ipanema". Toquinho and Vinícius also play their hits like "Tarde em Itapoã" and "A Gente vai Levando". Don’t miss this exclusive and never before published moment of these true geniouses of MPB.

Mulher 80 emerged as a result of the success of 'Malu Mulher' (1979), a miniseries starring Regina Duarte, which addressed the female situation in Brazilian society at that time. The main focus of the special was the female presence in music, honouring the singers and songwriters of MPB with musical numbers and testimonials.

Set against the turbulent atmosphere of the 1960s, Tropicália is a feature length documentary exploring the Brazilian artistic movement known as Tropicália, and the struggle its artists endured to protect their right to freely express revolutionary thought against the traditional Brazilian music of that time.

After appearing almost unrecognizable—significantly thinner—in the Christmas episode of Sai de Baixo, where he played Santa Claus, Milton faced criticism about his weight loss, which even sparked media rumors that he might have HIV. He decided to step away for a while and focus on creating his next work, Nascimento. To promote the album, he developed a tour with Gabriel Villela. With sets designed by Villela and Milton himself directing, the show symbolized the singer’s own rebirth. Dancers who also played percussion surrounded him onstage, performing around a giant drum at the center—an altar-like platform where Milton remained throughout the performance.

The Girl from Ipanema charts the progress of bossa nova (new wave), and the Brazilian singer Astrud Gilberto's musical development and rise to fame. Best of all, at the end of the documentary the mature Astrud answers the question that must surely be on every viewer's mind: Was she sick to death of singing The Girl from Ipanema?

The biggest Brazilian historical festival of all time. The great cast of the 1973 Phonogram (now Universal Music) meets in three nights to protest against the curtailment of freedom of expression in those dark years of the dictatorship. With the images rescued in 2005, revealing exciting moments, containing the incredible presentations, it brings a team of all greatness and the opportunity to understand the path that Brazilian music has taken to the present day.

It explores Rita Lee's personal life and her creative process, revealing her musical talent and her ability to transform on stage. Rita herself guides the narrative through past interviews she gave throughout her career and current testimonies.

Recorded in 1973, this TV show brings Elis Regina in an 'ensaio' (improvisation). The programme aired by TV Cultura rescues the living memory of the greatest MPB star through her testimonials on composers and performers. The images are black and white and with camera close-ups, it denounces the restless, strong-willed hands of Elis.

She mesmerised the crowd. The first sight would rapidly disappear and anyone who would get closer would also be surprised. It is not known if she did it for "beauty or precision", as Guimarães Rosa used to say. But the truth is that stereotypes would be destroyed as soon as she would fetch her followers. And revelations would unfold. Behind her suavely acute and toned voice, there was a deep tone that only few could reach. Behind her humble upbringing, there was an uncommon sensibility and intelligence. Her disguise was her irrepressible technique. Elis was pure emotion. And singing was not her final objective, she really wanted to make people happy. This film honours Elis and creates a singular portrait of Brazil's biggest star.

With a career that has passed the 40-year mark, Cesar Camargo Mariano continues to stay on top of his game. His arranging skills are unique and are permanently set in Brazilian music through singers such as Elis Regina, Simone and just about the best in Brazil and around the world. On the other side of this duo, we find Pedro Mariano, son of Cesar Camargo Mariano and the late Elis Regina. Though father and son had previously collaborated in Pedro’s three solo albums, with Piano & Voz they formalize that artistic synergy with a memorable recording (also available on DVD). Piano & Voz had a limited release of 10,000 units, but in case you are not able to get a hold of the album, there is also DVD release of the same project. You can hear samples of this album in either Pedro Mariano‘s or Cesar Camargo Mariano‘s web sites. Better yet, you can see and hear Cesar Camargo Mariano talking about each track in the CD and DVD at Trama.

Her difficult career beginning in her hometown, Porto Alegre, was not different from her friends' stories. Elis belonged to a group of people born to win. She had the talent, she knew her potential and she just needed to face the world with courage and determination. That is exactly what she did. The result is known by everybody and it is in this film, a unique register of memorable interpretations by Elis, including the song which Elis learned with Tom Jobim and entitles the film.

Elis & Tom is considered one of the most important albums in the history of Brazilian music. Recorded in Los Angeles, in 1974, it was all captured by a team of filmmakers led by director Roberto de Oliveira, who arranged for the duo to meet. The original footage was kept for 45 years until restored and remastered in 2018. The film is also an exciting reunion of the director with the artists and the material he filmed nearly five decades ago.

After the great success of the Rio season of her show Saudades do Brasil, Elis Regina made this special with Globo. In a circus-inspired stage, she sings Alô, Alô, Marciano by Rita Lee and Roberto de Carvalho; O Bêbado e a Equilibrista by João Bosco and Aldir Blanc; and O Que Foi Feito (de Vera) by Milton Nascimento and Fernando Brant, amongst others.

The documentary narrates the life of Toquinho, one of the greatest Brazilian artists, a musician who transcends the barriers of time and language with his sensitivity. A story that shapes Brazilian popular music.

In 1925, Gabriela, a poor, uneducated, yet charming woman becomes cook, mistress, and then wife of Nacib, a bar owner in Ilhéus, a small Brazilian coastal town run by the local colonels.

Fitzcarraldo is a dreamer who plans to build an opera house in Iquitos, in the Peruvian Amazon, so, in order to finance his project, he embarks on an epic adventure to collect rubber, a very profitable product, in a remote and unexplored region of the rainforest.

The art of Arrigo Barnabé, one of the pillars of the São Paulo experimental music scene during the 80's and author of critically acclaimed albums such as "Clara Crocodilo" (1980) and "Tubarões Voadores" (1984).

For three days at the Copacabana Palace in Rio de Janeiro, amorous cross-fertilizations are intertwined with petty tricks against the backdrop of the famous carnival festivities. Three (sympathetic) accomplices are beaten to a punch in the hotel vault; three charming stewardesses are looking for entertainment, but their three Carioca host, musicians Tom Jobim, Luiz Bonfá, and João Gilberto, are married; a man, separated from his wife, wants to catch her in the act of adultery.

Orphaned by father and mother, Clara has always dreamed of building a singing career. At the age of 16, she moved to Belo Horizonte, where she won the ABC Golden Voice contest. In 1966, she recorded her first vinyl: A Adorable Voice by Clara Nunes. The approach to samba made her achieve the longed for success, in addition to international repercussion. Clara Nunes revolutionized the music industry, becoming the first woman to break the barriers imposed by the record label.

Young lovers Orfeu and Eurydice run through the favelas of Rio during Carnaval, on the lam from a hitman dressed like Death and Orfeu's vengeful fiancée Mira and passing between moments of fantasy and stark reality. This impressionistic retelling of the Greek legend of Orpheus and Eurydice introduced bossa nova to the world with its soundtrack by young Brazilian composers Luiz Bonfá and Antonio Carlos Jobim.

A Brazilian theatre group that through talent, irony and humour confronted the Brazilian violent dictatorship in the 1970s revolutionising the gay movement worldwide and changing theatre and dance language to an entire generation.

The third episode of the Cities of Love franchise, Rio, I Love You is an anthology, created by 10 visionary directors from across the globe. The story line of each segment focuses on an encounter of love in a different neighborhood of the city, demonstrating the distinctive qualities and character of that location. The film serves to bridge gaps between cultures, educating and entertaining the audience, while celebrating unique and universal expressions of love.

ABC of a Strike captures the 1979 metal workers strikes outside of São Paulo. The footage sat untouched until after the death of highly-regarded director Leon Hirszman in 1987, by which time the material had a new relevance. The gripping film captures the negotiations between the labor unions and the factory bosses and shows the birth of the region’s Worker’s Party, as well as the emergence of its charismatic leader, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Rising from extreme poverty, Lula gained national prominence as a union activist during the late 70s and early 80s. After being jailed during his time as a union leader, he eventually becomes Brazil’s president from 2003 to 2010.

New York, 2010. Jeff Harris, a music journalist, sets out to uncover the truth about Francisco Tenório Júnior, a young Brazilian samba-jazz pianist who disappeared in Buenos Aires on March 18, 1976.

An enchanted journey through three extraordinary houses built by Master José Zanine on the seaside hillside of Joatinga, in Rio de Janeiro, surrounded by a stunning musical score, specially created for the film by maestro Antonio Carlos Jobim.

The documentary follows the commemorative tour for the 20th anniversary of singer Jorge Vercillo's career.