Memory and Identity as Alternative Cinematic Material
Spanish film journalist Héctor Llanos Martínez reflects on the Caleidoscópio section of the 59th Brasília Festival of Brazilian Cinema, where five formally diverse films use memory, identity, territory, and sensory experience as alternative cinematic material.
The Caleidoscópio, or Kaleidoscope, section at the 59th Brasília Festival of Brazilian Cinema—held from September 11 to 19, 2026—brought together five Brazilian feature films from various regions, each offering a distinct aesthetic approach. Curated under the leadership and supervision of the festival’s artistic director—critic, filmmaker, and programmer Eduardo Valente—this section aims to provide a space for alternative cinematic perspectives and languages outside the festival’s three main competitions. It is, therefore, a section specifically dedicated to the aesthetic and narrative diversity of contemporary Brazilian cinema.
It’s important to remember that a kaleidoscope does not produce a single image; instead, it combines various elements that shift to create new configurations. Over the course of the week, the three members of the FIPRESCI jury—Polish film historian and journalist Maja Korbecka; Brazilian musician and critic Helvecio Parente (creator of the Heuvi critique channel); and myself—encountered a bunch of very different offerings from the Brazilian film industry.
Despite their widely varying themes and genres, we could see that they share a common ground in their formal risk-taking, a clear intent—in most cases—to establish a strong artistic and auteurist voice, and a commitment to ensuring a diversity of perspectives at a festival like Brasília’s. As mentioned, while the five titles differ greatly, they share certain affinities.
We can identify several recurring themes and concerns across the works of these five Brazilian filmmakers competing in the Caleidoscópio section. One such theme is memory as cinematic material, powerfully explored through the protagonist of Diogo Oliveira’s Tempo à Faca, a young woman determined to avenge her grandfather and mother, and also through the protagonists of Mulheres do Bando, which features actresses from different generations of the Olodum Theater Group, which I learned is one of Brazil’s most important Black theatre companies.
Another shared element is the clear intention to transform the act of filmmaking into an eminently sensory experience for the viewer. This holds true for the existential Western Tempo à Faca, the experimental Os Vivos Caminham a Terra, directed by Pedro Maia de Brito, and the observational documentary Cacimba. It is also true, of course, for the FIPRESCI Award-winning Os Fantasmas Gentis, in which filmmaker Caetano Gotardo conveys personal relationships (with oneself and others) with a ceremonial naturalness, and the joy of living that, if viewed through the right lens, can be found in the little things.
Many of the narrative conflicts driving the plots of these five feature films center on identity and territory, making this section a timely kaleidoscope that reconstructs the reality of Brazilian society itself.
As a journalist specializing in the documentary genre, I welcome the fact that two of the entries in this section—which seeks relatively fresh perspectives—belong to the realm of non-fiction. Cacimba, by filmmaker Rodrigo Campos, follows the Baú quilombola community in the Jequitinhonha Valley, depicting their experiences amidst the expansion of lithium mining and land disputes. After all, what is land if not a battleground for memory and identity? Meanwhile, Mulheres do Bando is neither an individual nor a group biography. Filmmaker Thamires Vieira—the only woman in this competitive section of the Brazilian festival—draws upon the collective nature of this theatre group to gather personal memories and sensibilities surrounding a shared reality that is always worth discussing: the experience of being a Black woman in this country’s society. If there is one area where the Brasília Festival of Brazilian Cinema truly excels—beyond its genuine commitment to social diversity—it is its dedication to becoming an inclusive cultural event that ensures sensory accessibility for deaf and blind individuals.
Héctor Llanos Martínez
Edited by José Teodoro
© FIPRESCI 2026