TSPDT

Key Production Country: Brazil
Key Genres: Drama, Comedy, History, Crime, Rural Drama, Adventure
Key Collaborators: Hélio Silva (Cinematographer), Rafael Justo Valverde (Editor), Arduíno Colassanti (Leading Actor), Luiz Carlos Barreto (Producer), Jofre Soares (Leading Character Actor), Dib Lutfi (Cinematographer), Carlos Alberto Camuyrano (Editor), Nildo Parente (Leading Character Actor), Manfredo Colassanti (Leading Character Actor), Guilherme Magalhães Vaz (Composer), Anecy Rocha (Leading Actress), Maria Ribeiro (Leading Actress)

"Considered to be the ‘‘mentor’’ and ‘‘conscience’’ of Cinema Novo (New Cinema)—the movement that fundamentally transformed the theory and practice of film in Brazil and Latin America—Nelson Pereira dos Santos encapsulates many of its ideals in his works. The most important of these is the reaction against the domination of Brazilian screens by foreign films and imported cinematic models, for Cinema Novo is the result of efforts by directors such as Pereira, Glauber Rocha, and Carlos Diegues to make a genuinely ‘‘popular cinema.’’" - John Mraz (International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers, 2000)

"Santos’ impact on Latin American cinema cannot be overstated. For critics and cinephiles all over the world, Santos’ early films are milestones in the emergence of modern post-war cinema. Inspired by neorealism, his films from the 1950s and 1960s depict the brutal reality of life in the favelados (slums) found in cities such as Rio de Janeiro, or of retirantes (migrants) fleeing the famine in the drought-stricken northeastern region of Brazil. Throughout the last five decades, Santos produced and directed films of differing genres and themes. From documentaries to fiction films, he always keeps a distinguished sense of cinema’s role in society, maintains an independent authorship, and achieves an innovative and creative approach to exploring Brazilian culture." - Hudson Moura (Senses of Cinema, 2011)

"The father of the Brazilian cinema novo, his films and writings have consistently been a seminal influence on the movement. A former lawyer and journalist, he began his career as an assistant and has made several social and political shorts (Juventude, etc.). His first feature, Rio, 40 Graus, was the first to explore the thematic concerns of cinema novo and he later made a major contribution to the movement's international success with Vidas Secas (Barren Lives)." - Georges Sadoul (Dictionary of Film Makers, 1972)

"A master who outlived the majority of his disciples, Nelson Pereira dos Santos represents the beginning and arguably the end of modernity in Brazilian cinema. Leading 1960s auteur Glauber Rocha wrote that dos Santos’s debut feature Rio 40 graus (Rio, 40 Degrees, 1955) was the “fertilisation point” of Cinema Novo, the movement that radicalised national filmmaking and would incorporate dos Santos himself with the slightly younger generation. His career spans six decades, a milestone in a country which has never produced a stable industrial filmmaking model. Dos Santos emerged from privilege and as a young man was involved with the Brazilian radical left. His discovery of Italian neorealism proved a lasting influence on his work – and, remarkably, he was perhaps the last filmmaker working prolifically in the aughts to claim such a direct lineage." - Gabe Klinger (Sight & Sound, 2019)

"Because he has successfully undertaken a wide range of styles and themes, dos Santos has proven himself one of the most innovative directors in the rich history of Brazilian film… Dos Santos is highly regarded in Brazilian film circles for his affable personality and spirited defense and promotion of his nation's cinema. He has at times filmed with student crews in an effort to introduce young people to hands-on production; and he has participated actively in different organizations, such as an exhibition cooperative, designed to enhance the status of Brazilian cinema." - Dennis West (The Virgin International Encyclopedia of Film, 1992)

"Spanning an extraordinary range of styles and genres – from neorealist documentary to avant-grade counter cinema, from science-fiction to historical bio-pic to anthropological documentary – dos Santos' remarkable oeuvre is united by his striving to define a kind of a national cinema able to inspire Brazilian and international audiences alike." - Haden Guest (Harvard Film Archive, 2012)

"Italian cinema suggested that one could film in the street, with real people and real places, not celebrities and stars." - Nelson Pereira dos Santos, 2013)