BRASIL 40°

SELFRIDGES TO SCREEN BRAZILIAN MASTERPIECES IN OWN CINEMA

In a daring and unprecedented move SELFRIDGES is augmenting its May celebration of all things Brazilian, BRASIL 40°, by building a cinema inside its Oxford Street store and staging a major Brazilian Contemporary Film Festival.

All the movies to be shown are full-length features in the original Portuguese with English subtitles, directed by some of South America’s most distinguished filmmakers. BRASIL 40° is a major cultural event set to run throughout May filling SELFRIDGES stores with the vibrancy and excitement of Brasil.

BIA LESSA, Award-winning director and Creative Adviser to BRASIL 40° explains ‘We have musicians, dancers, chefs, sportsmen, painters and writers coming...so of course we have to include cinema – it’s one of Brasil’s greatest achievements, and we’re thrilled to be doing it in such style.”

ISABEL DIEGUES is a respected producer in Brasil, daughter of Cacá Diegues, the film director. She has selected the 24 contemporary Brazilian films to be screened. Isabel has included the controversial film MADAME SATAN about the legendary bisexual cabaret star and criminal of the 1930s, set in the slums of Rio where desperate dreams spring from poverty and squalor.

Also to be shown is the Oscar-nominated film CITY OF GOD (‘Cidade de Deus’), directed by FERNANDO MEIRELLES and KATIA LUND. This highly-praised, box-office hit was adapted from author Paulo Lins’ harsh Brazilian slice -of-life novel and honoured not only by receiving four ACADEMY AWARD nominations but also sweeping the Cinema Brasil Grand Prix awards and the HAVANA FILM FESTIVAL. Fernando Meirelles will be answering questions following the screening on May 25th.

Among other titles to be screened at BRASIL 40°...

O XANGO DE BAKER STREET, an hilarious thriller in which Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson arrive in Rio in pursuit of a stolen violin but end up giving themselves over to the sensual delights of the city...

GOD IS BRAZILIAN (Deus e Brasileiro) in which the Almighty joins a tyre repairman to search for a new saint in Brazil so he can take a much-needed holiday...

THE DOG’S WILL (O Auto da Compadecida) three intertwined comic stories contrast 1930s Brazil with Europe in the Middle Ages...

ME YOU THEM (Eu Tu Eles) set in the arid landscape of Brazil’s North-East where a woman shares her modest home with three husbands...

COPACABANA, a lyrical comedy about remembering the delights of life in Copacabana at any age...

TAINAH, AN AMAZON ADVENTURE (Taina) A young girl and her grandfather combat animal smugglers in the jungle...

WINDOW OF THE SOUL (Janela da Alma) a moving documentary about blindness and sight, featuring Wim Wnders, Oliver Sacks and 17 others alternating between philosophy, humour and poetry...

THE OYSTER AND THE WIND (A Ostra e o Vento) a love story and fantasy set on a mysterious island ruled by the wind...

MIDNIGHT (O Primeiro Dia) a desperate love story set in Copacabana on December 31st 1999...

ORFEU is a love story and thrilling evocation of Carnival featuring the music of Caetano Veloso...

THE TRESPASSER (O Invasor) in which two businessmen hire the hitman from hell and let loose a level of violence they have no chance of controlling...

THE HAPPY CRICKET (O Grilo Feliz) A moral tale set in an insect village attacked by a bad lizard.

OTHER STORIES (Outras Historias) A parable in which a beautiful sorceress bewitches her boss...

TWO SUMMERS (Houve uma Vez dois Veroes) Teenage love angst on the beach, as boy meets girl and summer turns to winter...

THE THREE MARIAS (As Tres Marias) Three sisters are used as bait in a revenge thriller set in Pernambuco...

TICKETS priced at £3 can be booked by telephoning 08708 371 007, tickets will also be sold at the market place kiosk on the lower ground atrium. All proceeds will go towards SELFRIDGES’ charitable link with the ABC TRUST (ACTION FOR BRASIL’S CHILDREN TRUST) (www.abctrust.org.uk). THE ABC TRUST is dedicated to fighting for the rights of millions of impoverished children in Brasil, and to the generation of projects designed to empower them and transform their lives.

BRASIL 40° offers an explosion of Brazilian cultural energy never before seen in this country. SELFRIDGES invites all-comers to experience it as a vibrant tribute to Brasil and its society.

BRASIL 40° runs from May 5th - 31st 2004
www.selfridges.com/brasil