How Angels are Born

How Angels are Born 1996

7.08

Two children flee together with a grown up from a slum in Rio because this man had problems with the local drug lord. They end up in the house where a rich American citizen lives with his daughter.

1996

Our Stories, Ourselves

Our Stories, Ourselves 2013

7.50

Sixty-six adolescents, residents of Favela da Maré, were selected to participate in a dance show led by the choreographer Ivaldo Bertazzo, which incorporated their own daily experiences. Ten years later, directors David Meyer and Helena Soldberg search for some of the participants of this experience.

2013

The Miracle of Candeal

The Miracle of Candeal 2004

5.20

The story of the Candeal favela in Salvador de Bahia, Brazil, where musician Carlinhos Brown carries out social and cultural initiatives that protect and enrich the lives of its inhabitants every day.

2004

The Violin Teacher

The Violin Teacher 2015

6.66

After failing to be admitted into the OSESP Orchestra, a talented violinist is forced to give music classes to teenagers in a public school. He soon finds his world transformed by the power of music and friendships formed with his pupils.

2015

Vitória

Vitória 2025

7.90

Nina is an elderly woman who lives alone and feels distressed by the increasing violence in her neighborhood. Amidst conflicts with her neighbors, she decides to film the movement of drug traffickers from her window, hoping to assist the police. After months of recording suspicious activities, her initiative attracts the attention of a journalist, who approaches Nina and offers to support her in her mission.

2025

Favela Government

Favela Government 1970

1

Brazil's "Red Command" drug cartel is considered a plague by the government. But for the people of the favelas they control, Red Command *is* the government. They’re the de facto leadership of the area. The gang has taken over the role of the authorities in their shanty towns, where the state has long abandoned them. Away Days got special access to the Rio favelas, hanging out out with young foot-soldiers, speaking to commanders, and seeing how civilians live between the gangs and the equally violent police militias.

1970

White House

White House 2025

6.50

Dé, Adrianim and Martins are three black teenagers from Chatuba, Rio de Janeiro. When Dé receives the news that Almerinda, his grandmother, is in the terminal phase of Alzheimer's disease, he decides to enjoy the last days of her life together with his two best friends.

2025

Smell of Diesel

Smell of Diesel 2026

1

The documentary portrays the collective traumas of the militarization of Rio de Janeiro’s favelas occupied by the Armed Forces during the mega sporting events. Through voices from within the favelas, the film documents the struggle for justice and reparation for victims of human rights violations.

2026

Streets of Rio

Streets of Rio 2008

4.13

Rio de Janeiro. Confronted with the violence that exists in the favela where he lives, Tiago sees the only way out to become a soccer player and, in this way, help his family to have a better life. Although he is the best player in his neighborhood and the chances of being discovered by a scout are good, he faces a number of problems. One of them is Tubarão, the leader of the most powerful gang in the favela, who wants Tiago to work for him as a drug dealer. To complicate matters even more, Tiago falls in love with Juliana, Tubarão's sister.

2008

Black I Am

Black I Am 2020

1

The women of the first Garífuna community in Honduras work hard for the future of their daughters. Surrounded by a dazzling landscape, they celebrate their identity and the importance of maternal figures.

2020

Public Domain

Public Domain 2014

9.00

Between 2011 and 2014, the documentary investigated the changes in Rio de Janeiro on behalf of mega-events: UPPs in slums, forced evictions, public spaces privatization and popular uprisings.

2014

Dancing with the Devil

Dancing with the Devil 2009

5.40

Rio de Janeiro. September, 2008. Three men stalk the gloomy back-alleys of the city's notorious slums. Spiderman, a 28-year-old drug lord, embarks on a routine patrol through the shadowy streets of Coréia, the sprawling slum he controls. Inspector Leonardo Torres, a muscle-bound operative from Rio's drug squad, inches through the alleys of another shantytown, shots ringing out around him. And Pastor Dione, an evangelical preacher intent on ending Rio's drug conflict, trawls the slums for lost souls. With unprecedented access to some of Rio's most wanted men, Dancing with the Devil in the City of God tells the story of Rio's drug war through the eyes of three men locked into one of the bloodiest urban conflicts on earth. Written by Jon Blair and Tom Phillips

2009

The Other Side of the Postcard

The Other Side of the Postcard 2016

7.50

The Favela Pacification Program was launched in 2008 to reduce crime and drug trafficking in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In April 2015 however, police shot and killed 10-year old Eduardo in Complexo do Alemão, causing uproar in that community. Alemão and other pacified communities began to realise that the program had become the very thing it was designed to destroy. Taking place in the build to the 2016 Olympic Games, this is the side of Rio that you have never seen before.

2016

Complexo: Parallel Universe

Complexo: Parallel Universe 2011

7.30

No Rio de Janeiro, a 13 km do Cristo Redentor, dois portugueses aventuraram-se na mais temida favela do Brasil, onde moram mais de 300.000 pessoas - o Complexo do Alemão. Em 2007, no período de maior tensão e violência no Rio de Janeiro, viveram a maior operação policial já realizada no estado, sentiram na pele como é a vida de um simples morador. O filme retrata este perigoso e complexo mundo, um universo paralelo inserido dentro de uma ordem maior, um mundo à parte, que segue uma ordem diferente da ordem global.

2011

Complexes

Complexes 2020

6.00

The short documentary ‘Complexos‘ features intimate and emotional views on how residents of favelas in Rio de Janeiro use media and arts to raise their voices and act for justice, dignity and respect. ‘Complexos’ is part of a collaborative process between the Finland-based Anti-Racism Media activism Alliance (ARMA Alliance) and the favela-based audiovisual collective Cafuné na Laje.

2020

Impure

Impure 2018

7.20

Rio de Janeiro, during the 90's. Evandro dreams about becoming a great businessman, but ends up entering the world of crime and making an empire out of his criminal organization. His business skills and leadership abilities draw the attention of Morello, a federal police officer with a self-destructive behavior who sees in Evandro a worthy enemy. Two strategists that share the love for danger. The hunt down begins.

2018

Sintonia

Sintonia 2019

8.10

Told through three different characters' perspectives, the story of Sintonia explores the interconnection of the music, drug traffic, and religion in São Paulo. In the quest to be somebody, many paths will converge.

2019

City of God: The Fight Rages On

City of God: The Fight Rages On 2024

7.60

Twenty years after City of God, Buscapé recounts how conflicts between police, traffickers, and militias impacted the community.

2024

The Raid

The Raid 2016

1

2010: Just as the Brazilian government launch a military-assisted siege on one of Rio de Janeiro’s most notorious and criminally-controlled favelas, the identities of four undercover policemen operating in the slum are accidentally leaked. As violence mounts, the favela’s ruthless boss, orders his men to hunt them down.

2016