In Women’s Month, Canal Brasil Highlights Films by Female Directors and Launches Unprecedented Series “Estopim”, on Femicide

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Canal Brasil will present a special program in March, Cinedelas, spotlighting films created by women. Every Saturday and Sunday at 10 PM, the program will feature films directed by both Brazilian and international female filmmakers, including premieres of Nele Wohlatz’s Dormir de Olhos Abertos and Eliza Capai’s Incompatível com a Vida. In addition, coinciding with International Women’s Day, the documentary series Estopim will launch on March 8, airing daily at 9 PM. Estopim is a factual series delving into the underlying causes of major crimes against Brazilian women. While these incidents frequently make headlines, the series seeks to reveal the sparks and societal frameworks that perpetuate such violence. Each episode examines well-known cases and the corresponding societal responses, exploring the historical and cultural factors that contribute to these recurring atrocities. The series focuses on various forms of violence—political, marital, sexual, hate-based, and systemic—analyzing societal and judicial reactions to specific cases.

Cinedelas has been a recurring feature in Canal Brasil’s March programming since 2016, dedicated to showcasing films made by women, with over 111 titles from 85 directors featured to date. According to a Filme B survey, 34% of Brazilian feature films released commercially by 2025 will be directed by women. Notably, 38% of new Brazilian feature film releases on Canal Brasil during the same period were directed by women, surpassing the market average. Canal Brasil’s Women’s Month Showcase The Women’s Month showcase includes the following films. Note: Director and specific air dates are not yet available for all films. Dormir de Olhos Abertos (2024): Directed by Nele Wohlatz, airing March 7 at 10 PM (rated 18). This film follows Kai, a Taiwanese citizen who arrives in Brazil heartbroken and connects with Fu Ang through a faulty AC unit. As the rain disappears, so does Fu Ang’s shop. Kai then encounters Chinese workers in a skyscraper, feeling a sense of connection to one of their stories. As Kai spends time in Brazil, encounters with other travelers lead to connections across cultural and linguistic divides, highlighting the experience of feeling out of place in unfamiliar surroundings.

The Women’s Business Club (2024): Directed by Anna Muylaert, airing March 8 at 10 PM (rated 18). This film presents a world with reversed gender roles, where women hold positions of power and men take on more subdued roles. Photographer Jongo (Luís Miranda) accompanies rookie reporter Candinho (Rafa Vitti) to an old-fashioned club in São Paulo. There, Cesarea (Cristina Pereira) and her assistant Brasilia (Louise Cardoso) lead a group of women with a keen interest in justice. As Candinho bonds with his experienced colleague, he encounters compelling stories that challenge his worldview. Pasargada (2024): Directed by Dira Paes, airing March 14 at 10 PM (rated 14). Marking Dira Paes’s directorial and screenwriting debut, this film centers on Irene (Dira Paes), a solitary ornithologist immersed in her research in Rio’s rainforest. She encounters Manuel (Humberto Carrão), a young guide fluent in bird language, and together they navigate their personal struggles.

A Festa De Léo: The film follows young Léo (Nego Ney) as he approaches his twelfth birthday, only to discover that his father has stolen the money intended for his party. His mother, Rita (Cíntia Rosa), desperately seeks funds while also trying to support her troubled husband, Dudu (Jonathan Haagensen). My Name is Baghdad (2020): Directed by Caru Alves de Souza, airing March 21 at 10 PM (rated 16, 99 minutes). This film offers a compelling look at Baghdad, a 17-year-old skateboarder from São Paulo’s O neighborhood. She spends her time with local boys and her mother’s friends until she meets a group of female skaters, an encounter that changes the course of her life.

Unknown film: Paula (Thalita Carauta), 38, retreats to an isolated country house for the weekend, where she finds two couples in distress: Luciana (Karina Ramil) and Marcelo (Pierre Santos), who have been together for eight years without marrying, and Claudio (Paulo Hamilton) and Fabiana (Verônica Reis), who seem happy but are masking a toxic relationship. As an old friend of Marcelo’s, Paula’s arrival stirs up long-buried conflicts. Despite the escalating tensions and uncomfortable revelations, Paula attempts to navigate the surrounding dysfunction with humor, contrasting it with the stability of her own life. Incompatível com a Vida: Directed by Eliza Capai, airing March 28 at 10 PM. Eliza Capai’s film explores her personal experience with a pregnancy diagnosis that was fatal to the fetus. Through interviews with other women who have undergone similar experiences, the film creates powerful expressions of life, death, and grief following miscarriage or stillbirth, as well as the fight for access to legal abortion. The film breaks the silence surrounding these often-private losses, humanizing those affected and questioning Brazil’s legal and social barriers to abortion, even in cases permitted by law.

Navigating New Horizons: Two Women’s Journeys in Canal Brasil’s Women’s Month Programming

Unknown film: The film presents two women whose lives diverge in the aftermath of a disaster. Joana (Fernanda Vianna) seeks a fresh start in the unfamiliar city of São Paulo. Simultaneously, Flávia (Mirella Faccanha) and her wife Mara (Bruna Linzmeyer) relocate to her late father’s farm, where they face rural challenges together. The story explores themes of change, struggle, and the search for identity as both women navigate their new landscapes. With its diverse selection of films and documentaries, Canal Brasil’s Women’s Month programming offers a thought-provoking and engaging celebration of female talent and important social issues.