Anita do Nascimento Pereira, Serginho Groisman, Renata de Almeida and Leon Cakoff
IT WAS AN EMOTION-FILLED OPENING NIGHT AT THE 30TH MOSTRA
Many of Leon Cakoff and Renata de Almeida`s friends attended the Mostra`s opening ceremony to celebrate three decades of endless cinemaThe 30th Mostra Internacional de Cinema em São Paulo had its official opening night on Thursday, October 19. Guests were invited to the Ibirapuera Auditorium located inside Ibirapuera Park. Among those present, were acclaimed filmmakers such as Hector Babenco, Walter Salles, Bruno Barreto, Daniela Thomas and Arnaldo Jabor.
The directors of the event, Leon Cakoff and Renata de Almeida alongside television presenter, Serginho Groisman, opened the ceremony by introducing the Mostra’s sponsors and officials who were present. “It’s wonderful to see the result of this event and to see how receptive Brazilians are of other cultures. When my family arrived here, although we were in dire despair, we were still welcomed. I`m improvising, but I am truly moved", said Cakoff.
João Batista de Andrade, São Paulo State Secretary of Culture, attended the ceremony on behalf of Governor Cláudio Lembo at the ceremony. "This Mostra is very important for the Brazilian film culture. It’s very important to create an audience for the future", he stated. The mayor of São Paulo, Gilberto Kassab, was also present.
The 30th Mostra also paid homage to the public by honoring film enthusiast Anita do Nascimento Pereira. She was invited to go up on stage and read the encouraging message she had left on Mostra’s blog the day before. The end of the message read: "Cinema is food for the soul and doesn’t need to be ingested completely, all at once, in order to enjoy its benefits".
After the speeches, the guests watched I Want to Be a Pilot, a short film by Spanish director Diego Quemada-Diez (an assistant cameraman in The Constant Gardener), and a screening of the full-length film The U.S. vs. John Lennon wrapped up the evening. Nothing more appropriate: the production parallels the world’s reality of that time with the present time.
After the event, the guests went on to dance to DJ Zé Pedro’s predominantly Brazilian music at a party at The Week nightclub, located on the West zone of São Paulo. In perfect harmony, the different cliques celebrated the start of yet another Mostra.