The long read · Brazilian cinema
The Passion of Brazilian Cinema and Its Global Stars
Brazil’s cinema is as vivid as its music. Here is the story of Brazilian film, from the musical comedies of Rio’s studios and Cinema Novo to City of God and an Oscar in 2025, and where to watch in Rio de Janeiro.
Updated October 2026
From the chanchadas to Cinema Novo
In the 1940s and 1950s Rio’s studios, led by Atlântida, made the chanchadas, carnival musical comedies loved across the country, while Carmen Miranda, raised in Rio, became a Hollywood star. In 1962 Anselmo Duarte’s O Pagador de Promessas won the Palme d’Or, still Brazil’s only one.
In the 1960s Cinema Novo, led by Glauber Rocha and Nelson Pereira dos Santos, filmed the hard life of the north-east with a handheld camera and “an idea in the head”. After a quiet spell in the early 1990s came a rebirth: Walter Salles’s Central Station won the Golden Bear, and City of God earned four Oscar nominations.
Must-watch films
To understand Brazilian cinema, start with these.
- O Pagador de Promessas (1962): a farmer’s vow, a cross and a stubborn priest, winner of the Palme d’Or.
- Black God, White Devil (1964): Glauber Rocha’s wild epic of the north-east, the heart of Cinema Novo.
- Central Station (1998): Walter Salles’s road movie, with Fernanda Montenegro, winner of the Golden Bear.
- City of God (2002): Fernando Meirelles and Kátia Lund’s electrifying story of a Rio neighbourhood.
- I’m Still Here (2024): Salles’s portrait of a family under the military regime of the 1970s, Brazil’s first Oscar winner.
The stars
Brazil’s stars are loved at home and across the world.
- Carmen Miranda (1909–1955): the “Brazilian Bombshell” of Hollywood musicals.
- Fernanda Montenegro: the grande dame of Brazilian acting, nominated for the Oscar for Central Station.
- Fernanda Torres: her daughter, winner of the Golden Globe for I’m Still Here.
- Sônia Braga: the star of Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands and Kiss of the Spider Woman.
- Wagner Moura: the star of Elite Squad, and best actor at Cannes in 2025 for The Secret Agent.
Where to watch in Rio de Janeiro
Every year the Festival do Rio fills the city’s screens with hundreds of films from Brazil and the world. All year, the Grupo Estação cinemas in Botafogo show art-house and Brazilian films, and the Cinemateca of the Museum of Modern Art screens classics.
Our advice: see a new Brazilian film at Estação in Botafogo, then join the crowd at a bar on Rua Voluntários da Pátria.
Festival do Rio Grupo Estação cinemas
Hidden on the silver screen: international productions filmed in Rio de Janeiro
Rio’s beaches, hills and carnival have dazzled film-makers from around the world.
- Black Orpheus (1959), Morro da Babilônia: Marcel Camus’s carnival retelling of the Orpheus myth, winner of the Palme d’Or and the Oscar for France.
- That Man from Rio (1964): Jean-Paul Belmondo’s breathless adventure across Rio and Brasília.
- Moonraker (1979), Sugarloaf Mountain: Roger Moore’s James Bond fights Jaws on the cable car.
Brazil in Hollywood
From Carmen Miranda onwards, Brazilians have found fame abroad. Walter Salles made On the Road, Fernando Meirelles directed The Constant Gardener and The Two Popes, and the actors Rodrigo Santoro, Alice Braga and Wagner Moura work across Hollywood. Kleber Mendonça Filho won best director at Cannes in 2025 for The Secret Agent.
Questions and answers
Has a Brazilian film won the Oscar?
Yes. I’m Still Here, by Walter Salles, won the Oscar for best international feature in 2025, Brazil’s first win in the category.
What was Cinema Novo?
The 1960s movement of Glauber Rocha and Nelson Pereira dos Santos, which filmed Brazilian life with small crews and handheld cameras.
Join the conversation
Which Brazilian film or star do you love most? Share your favourite scenes and the films we should add.
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Sources: the Cinemateca Brasileira, the Festival de Cannes, the Berlinale, the Festival do Rio and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, checked on 6 November 2026. The trailers are from Curzon’s, Sony Pictures Classics’ and NEON’s official channels.