Sean Penn is headed to Brazil. The actor and filmmaker has boarded Marianna Brennand’s acclaimed debut feature “Manas” as an executive producer.
The Brazilian film, which won her the Best Director Award at Venice Days (the independent parallel section of the Venice Film Festival), brings the actor together with last year’s Best International Feature Film winner Walter Salles and two-time Palme d’Or winners Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne as EPs. Maria Carlota Bruno, who also worked on Salles’ “I’m Still Here,” is an executive producer as well.
In a Friday statement, Penn said, “In the tradition last fulfilled by Walter Salles’s ‘I’m Still Here,’ Marianna Brennand’s film ‘Manas’ continues Brazil’s most enduring cinematic legacy. Films of striking social relevance that never fall to polemic or sensationalism, but instead so trustingly fulfill their characters’ plight and courage. ‘Manas’ is deeply emotional, stirring and God forbid … important. I felt as if I had to put my skin back on after watching it.”
“I first met Sean in Cannes, on the night I received the Women in Motion Emerging Talent Award from Kering and Cannes Film Festival, alongside Nicole Kidman. It was a pivotal evening in my career — I was deeply emotional and spoke from the heart about what it means to give voice to women and children who are so often silenced,” Brennand added. “After my speech, Sean asked to meet me. He told me he needed to know the person behind those words and to see the film that had moved so many in the audience that night.”
“After watching ‘Manas,’ he called me to share how profoundly shaken he was by the film. He spoke of its cinematic and narrative power in bringing to light a story so difficult to tell, one that reflects the lived reality of countless women and children, not only in the depths of the Amazon but across the world,” she continued. “From that moment, he committed himself to helping raise awareness for the film, convinced it needed to reach audiences everywhere. Sean has long been an inspiration to me — not only for his work as a filmmaker, but for his courage as a social activist and humanitarian. ‘Manas’ was born from a deep desire to spark empathy and inspire social and political change. Sean coming on board as executive producer — alongside Walter Salles, Maria Carlota Bruno and the Dardenne brothers — is an honor for us, and such a powerful step in the film’s journey.”
According to the official synopsis, the film was born out of 10 years of research in the Amazon (Brennand was originally a documentarian) and “tells the story of Marcielle, a 13-year-old from Marajó Island. Silenced in a society that ignores violence against women and children, she confronts generational wounds and takes control of her destiny, forever altering her family’s fate.”
The movie has already won 26 awards and is one of 16 titles under consideration to represent Brazil at the Academy Awards, along with the Cannes-winning “The Secret Agent.” The film was recently acquired by KimStim for a U.S. release (it will be released in up to 20 cities on a soon-to-be-announced date), while Bendita Film Sales is launching international sales in select territories at the Toronto International Film Festival. Should ‘Manas’ be chosen as Brazil’s official Academy Award submission, Brennand would be only the third woman whose film has ever been submitted for the category, and if nominated, the first Brazilian woman to receive an Academy Award nomination for Best International Feature Film.
