Working-class woman’s struggles anchor Brazil award contender ‘Cyclone’

The cast of "Cyclone," a movie from Brazil which has been nominated for the Golden Goblet Awards Main Competition, introduced their film at the 27th Shanghai International Film Festival crew meeting on Wednesday, June 18.

Created by four women filmmakers, the movie centers on a working-class woman who is also a scriptwriter known by the name of Cyclone.

Divorced and childless, she persistently tries to see her work being performed, yet continually encounters barriers. Her aspirations are often dismissed as mere fantasies, attributed to her gender and social standing.

The film’s director, Flávia Castro, recounted the journey she undertook to create the film, including an invitation extended by lead actress Luiza Mariani, in collaboration with producers Joana Mariani and Eliane Ferreira.

Castro recalled they presented her with a fully developed outline that depicted the social dilemmas confronting women in the major Brazilian city of Sao Paulo in 1919.

"Although the narrative of the film is situated in the past and rooted in reality," said one of the producers, Eliane Ferreira, "these occurrences could transpire in the present day, anywhere across the globe."

In support of this perspective, co-producer Joana Mariani added, "As we discussed with a Chinese audience after yesterday's screening, this film not only reflects a Brazilian reality, but it also amplifies women's voices globally."

Luiza Mariani, the actress in the lead role of Cyclone and also co-author of the screenplay, spoke at the cast meeting about her concept of the character.

She said she depicted Cyclone as a woman with intense determination in pursuit of her aspirations. Mariani said the character’s bravery profoundly resonated with her own.

"Despite the constant discouragement Cyclone gets from people, she remains undeterred in pursuit of her dream," she said. 

"While I see many differences between myself and this character, we possess significant commonalities. We are both imbued with courage to pursue our aspirations," she concluded.