2019 marks the downfall of any future prospects for Brazilian cinema

[Judi Lynn]

Not only did the industry suffer from less institutional and economic resources, but it is also reeling from a declared war of the government against the artistic class

Dec.12.2019 1:27PM

Helen Beltrame-Linné
SÃO PAULO
From the bottomless trunk of what can be called, without exaggeration, the new dystopic reality of Brazil came last week news of the removal of Brazilian film posters from the walls of the national cinema agency, Ancine. The cleaning did not restrict itself to the premises: information about national films currently showing and cultural policy have been disappearing from the institution’s website.

The posters incident not only demonstrates the complete misguidance of Bolsonaro’s government, but also forces a watchful observer to contemplate different hypotheses as to the real plot of the Dantesque nightmare currently endured by the Brazilian cultural industry.

The dissolution of the Ministry of Culture on the first day of 2019 was a significant institutional blow — one that was, moreover, already attempted by the Temer government in 2016 — and revealed the presidential contempt for the sector. However, the process of systematic demolition began well before the inauguration, with the tax rebate Rouanet Act being paralyzed in 2018.


The financial strangling continued in 2019 with a general review of the sponsorship policies of all main state-owned companies, resulting in the complete withdrawal of an essential form of public aid. As a follow-up act, the funds from the Audiovisual Sector Fund – for its most part already attached to specific ongoing projects – were simply blocked.

More:
https://www1.folha.uol.com.br/internacional/en/culture/2019/12/2019-marked-the-dissolution-of-the-current-state-of-brazils-film-industry.shtml