

42 minutes to understand why São Paulo's Carnival was never the same.
Documentary about the rise and fall of Leandro de Itaquera Samba School, a cultural organization from São Paulo east end that had a major role during the profissionalization of Carnival competition in the city.
Direction
Novais captures raw testimony with urgency.
Editing
Archival footage cuts hit like samba breaks.
Sound
The drums are characters, not background.
Director
Bianca Novais
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Itaquera's struggle mirrors countless peripheral communities globally where 'formal recognition' becomes cultural gentrification.
The 42-minute runtime isn't arbitrary—it's reportedly the exact length of a competition samba song, forcing viewers into the performers' temporal experience.