Oscar semifinalists are defined; Brazil is left out

Brazil has never won one Oscar of international production – nor any other.

The last time Brazil was among the semi-finalists in the category was in the 80th edition, in 2008, with The Year My Parents Went on Vacation, by Cao Hamburger. Before that, he competed with The Payer Promessas, by Anselmo Duarte, in the 35th edition, with a ceremony held in 1963, The Quadrillo, by Fábio Barreto, in the 68th, in 1996, What is this fellow?, by Bruno Barreto, in the 70th, in 1998, and Central do Brasil, by Walter Salles, in the 71st, in 1999.

Our candidate for the 95th edition – whose ceremony will take place on March 12, 2023 – was mars one, by Gabriel Martins. Some changes have been made to our representative selection this time. The selection committee was expanded, a list of semi-finalists, or pre-list, was created and the process was brought forward, to give the Brazilian candidate more time to campaign.

One of the problems in the Brazilian choice was an attachment to outdated ideas in the category, such as a certain type of film or theme that would be privileged by the Academy, when, in fact, the main criterion has been the film's participation in one of the biggest international festivals. prestige, such as Cannes, Venice and Berlin.

Difficulties

mars one I also had other things against it. The film played at Sundance and was well received, but for international productions, the festival does not have as much strength as Cannes or Venice.

To make matters worse, of the 74 awards offered by the Academy specifically to foreign films since 1947, 57 have gone to Europeans, 9 to Asians, 5 to Americans (including Canada) and 3 to Africans. At the most prestigious festivals, Latin Americans also tend to have little space, especially in the competition.

The Brazilian audiovisual crisis, which produced more than 100 films annually, but which was almost paralyzed in recent years, also leaves Brazil further and further away from a Oscar in the category.

The truth is that Brazil needs many things to get there: more productions, with more money, serious publicity work abroad, including at festivals, help for the campaign, as candidates from other countries have.

(To Estadão Content)

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