Brazilian cinema was introduced early in the 20th century but took
some time to consolidate itself as a popular form of entertainment.
The film industry of Brazil has gone through periods of ups and downs,
a reflection of its dependency on state funding and incentives.A
couple of months after the Lumière brothers' invention, a film
exhibition was held in Rio de Janeiro. As early as 1898, the Italian
Affonso Segreto supposedly filmed the Guanabara Bay from the ship
Brésil on a return journey from Europe, though some researchers
question the veracity of this event as no copy of the film remains. He
would go on to make documentaries with his brother Paschoal Segreto.
From the early beginning of the 20th century, as early as 1900 to the
year of 1912, Brazilian films had made a major impact on the internal
market, as they produced over an annual production of one-hundred
films. It is the year of 1908, also coined Brazil's "golden age" of
Cinema, that the country saw its first widely popular film. The film
was by Antonio Leal, a reconstruction film of The Great Train Robbery,
by Edwin S. Porter, titled Os Estranguladores. An ad of a May 1987
issue of Gazeta de Petrópolis, as shown in 1995 by Jorge Vittorio
Capellaro and Paulo Roberto Ferreira, was introduced as the new "birth
certificate" of Brazilian cinema, as three short films were
advertised: Chegada do Trem em Petrópolis, Bailado de Crenças no
Colégio de Andarahy and Ponto Terminal da Linha dos Bondes de
Botafogo, Vendo-se os Passageiros Subir e Descer.During this
"belle-epoque" of Brazilian cinema, when black and white silent films
were less costly to produce, most work resulted from the effort of
passionate individuals willing to take on the task themselves rather
than commercial enterprises. Neither is given much attention by the
state, with legislation for the sector being practically non-existent.
Film theaters only become larger in number in Rio and São Paulo late
in the following decade, as power supply becomes more reliable.
Foreign films as well as short films documenting local events were
most common. Some of the first fictional work filmed in the country
were the so-called "posed" films, reconstitutions of crimes that had
recently made the press headlines. The first success of this genre is
Francisco Marzullo's Os Estranguladores (1908). "Sung" films were also
popular. The actors would hide behind the screen and dub themselves
singing during projection. During the 1920s film production flourished
throughout several regions of the country: Recife, Campinas,
Cataguases, Juiz de Fora and Guaranésia.Also in the early 20th
century of Brazilian cinema, there was a major lack of Black presence
in films that were being made. Brazilian and American films are common
in this aspect, as both countries had endured similar types of
European colonization, and how the colored were not given any time or
recognition on film. Many of the early films being produced in Brazil
were also made by Italian Americans, with respect to the likes of
Affonso Segreto. Another way Brazil and America had similar aspects in
their films is the idea of "blackface" in America, and the "redface"
in Brazil. The indigenous culture of Brazil was shamed as the African
Americans were in the country of America, and both were used to convey
the identities in films by people who were not of such color.
some time to consolidate itself as a popular form of entertainment.
The film industry of Brazil has gone through periods of ups and downs,
a reflection of its dependency on state funding and incentives.A
couple of months after the Lumière brothers' invention, a film
exhibition was held in Rio de Janeiro. As early as 1898, the Italian
Affonso Segreto supposedly filmed the Guanabara Bay from the ship
Brésil on a return journey from Europe, though some researchers
question the veracity of this event as no copy of the film remains. He
would go on to make documentaries with his brother Paschoal Segreto.
From the early beginning of the 20th century, as early as 1900 to the
year of 1912, Brazilian films had made a major impact on the internal
market, as they produced over an annual production of one-hundred
films. It is the year of 1908, also coined Brazil's "golden age" of
Cinema, that the country saw its first widely popular film. The film
was by Antonio Leal, a reconstruction film of The Great Train Robbery,
by Edwin S. Porter, titled Os Estranguladores. An ad of a May 1987
issue of Gazeta de Petrópolis, as shown in 1995 by Jorge Vittorio
Capellaro and Paulo Roberto Ferreira, was introduced as the new "birth
certificate" of Brazilian cinema, as three short films were
advertised: Chegada do Trem em Petrópolis, Bailado de Crenças no
Colégio de Andarahy and Ponto Terminal da Linha dos Bondes de
Botafogo, Vendo-se os Passageiros Subir e Descer.During this
"belle-epoque" of Brazilian cinema, when black and white silent films
were less costly to produce, most work resulted from the effort of
passionate individuals willing to take on the task themselves rather
than commercial enterprises. Neither is given much attention by the
state, with legislation for the sector being practically non-existent.
Film theaters only become larger in number in Rio and São Paulo late
in the following decade, as power supply becomes more reliable.
Foreign films as well as short films documenting local events were
most common. Some of the first fictional work filmed in the country
were the so-called "posed" films, reconstitutions of crimes that had
recently made the press headlines. The first success of this genre is
Francisco Marzullo's Os Estranguladores (1908). "Sung" films were also
popular. The actors would hide behind the screen and dub themselves
singing during projection. During the 1920s film production flourished
throughout several regions of the country: Recife, Campinas,
Cataguases, Juiz de Fora and Guaranésia.Also in the early 20th
century of Brazilian cinema, there was a major lack of Black presence
in films that were being made. Brazilian and American films are common
in this aspect, as both countries had endured similar types of
European colonization, and how the colored were not given any time or
recognition on film. Many of the early films being produced in Brazil
were also made by Italian Americans, with respect to the likes of
Affonso Segreto. Another way Brazil and America had similar aspects in
their films is the idea of "blackface" in America, and the "redface"
in Brazil. The indigenous culture of Brazil was shamed as the African
Americans were in the country of America, and both were used to convey
the identities in films by people who were not of such color.
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