Synopsis: Brazil, 1977. Marcelo, a technology expert in his early 40s, is on the run. He arrives in Recife during carnival week, hoping to reunite with his son, but soon realizes that the city is far from being the non-violent refuge he seeks.

Kleber Mendonça Filho: Kleber Mendonça Filho was born in Recife, Brazil. A journalism graduate from the Federal University of Pernambuco, he began his career as a film critic and programmer, curating for the Joaquim Nabuco Foundation for nearly two decades. He has contributed to major Brazilian publications and serves as artistic director of the Janela Internacional de Cinema do Recife and chief curator at Instituto Moreira Salles.
Starting with short films in the 1990s, Mendonça explored fiction, documentary, and music videos, earning over 100 awards. His first feature-length work was the documentary Crítico (2008), followed by Neighboring Sounds (2012), his debut fiction feature, which screened at over 100 international festivals and was named one of the year’s top 10 films by The New York Times. Aquarius (2016) brought even greater acclaim, released in over 100 countries.
In 2019, he co-directed Bacurau with Juliano Dornelles. The film premiered in competition at Cannes and received the Jury Prize. His latest feature, Ghost Portraits (Retratos Fantasmas), a documentary developed over seven years, premiered in a Special Screening at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.