Marcelo Brennand

Downtown Recife’s classic movie palaces from the 20th century are mostly gone. That city area is now an archaeological site of sorts that reveals aspects of life in society which have been lost. And that’s just part of the story.

During three months, a film crew documented the political scene of an election in the countryside of Brazil’s northeast region and registered the backstage of a political practice that became a means of survival for many communities. For 90 days, money flows through the city of Gravatá, in the state of Pernambuco, and people are drawn to political structures without any ideology or political platform.

A diverse cross-section of Israeli society converges in a single multi-use building, the Shikun. As people of different languages, origins and generations come together in highly theatrical encounters, they grapple with the current state of affairs. In a poignant metaphor inspired by Eugène Ionesco’s famous play “Rhinoceros”, some begin to turn into rhinoceroses, while others resist.

Curral is a political drama set in the rural Brazilian city of Gravatá. During the mayoral elections, the population is divided between the Blue and Red parties, two political oligarchies fighting each other for power. A recent severe drought means water is the main bargaining chip when it comes to securing a majority of people's votes. Chico Caixa is a former city employee. He lost his job trying to take water supplies to a poor neighborhood which had been abandoned for political reasons. Caixa is invited by a childhood partner, Joel, to work on his councilor campaign. Joel presents himself as a new alternative to the older candidates, who have been in power for decades. But as the campaign progresses, Chico Caixa soon realizes that breaking apart from the established political game is not always as easy as it may seem

In a messy room, a slap knocks a woman to the floor. The attacker appears deranged, bathed in anger and tears. The reason that leads the two, apparently old acquaintances, to this state is not immediately revealed. We are quickly transported to another time, the 70s: violence, repression, dictatorship, the hippie generation, the counterculture. We met these two women, now friends, in a movie theater. Here begins a puzzle to be put together, where present, past and illusion mix and become confused.