1 hour ago
3
Paris-based Premium Films, together with its feature film sales division MPM Premium, has acquired international sales rights to Matheus Farias and Enock Carvalho’s “The Riverbank” (“A Margem do Rio”).
The atmospheric erotic thriller will world premiere in the prestigious international competition at the upcoming Locarno Film Festival, taking place in Switzerland over August 5-15.
The duo’s feature debut comes five years after their short film “Inabitável” made waves at the Sundance Film Festival and a year after Kleber Mendonça Filho’s “The Secret Agent” catapulted the filmmakers’ home and hub of Recife into a major international platform.
The film also consecrated Farias as one of the country’s most renowned editors, with his winning a Platino Award for his work on the Oscar-nominated picture. “The Riverbank” features several “The Secret Agent” actors, including Robério Diógenes, Kaiony Venâncio and Carlos Francisco.
Set in Recife, it follows young cleaner Izaquiel (Caique Copque), whose nightly search for intimacy leads him to magnetic fisherman Jeremias (Ítalo Martins). As violence closes in, both embark on a journey into the depths of the mangroves, where reality and myth intertwine, exposing the invisible structures of power that govern their world.
“We were immediately captivated by the way the characters’ stories intertwine within the wild, nocturnal world of Recife’s mangrove forest,” said Jean-Charles Mille, general manager of Premium Films & MPM Premium. “Predator and prey, desire and danger, the unconscious and class politics become inseparable in a thriller charged with erotic tension and simmering suspense.”
The exec added that what “impressed” his team the most “is how Matheus and Enock transform genre into a powerful cinematic language.” “‘The Riverbank’ moves effortlessly between mystery, sensuality and tropical magical realism while confronting systems of domination, abuse of power and ideological control with remarkable emotional depth. It is a bold work of auteur cinema that remains gripping from beginning to end, and we believe its singular artistic voice will resonate with audiences well beyond the traditional boundaries of genre or queer cinema.”
Asked by Variety about the film’s refined balance of genres — the story traverses the classic erotic thriller to experiment with the tropical noir, crime drama, magical realism and even a hint of whodunnit — Farias said he and Carvalho have been professional and life partners for 13 years, so they have a “unified vision of what cinema can be.” “The elements of genre cinema were already present in our early films, the shorts, but it was never something we approached in a particularly calculated way. The tone of our stories is directly connected to what is unfolding within them.” Faria added Mati Diop’s “Atlantics” and Ali Abbasi’s “Border” as tonal and visual references.
“In ‘The Riverbank,’ this comes from the experience of the protagonist Izaquiel,” adds Carvalho. “There is the reality of life, of the real places, of the routine of work, but there is also the space of myth and non-realism. In between all that, the story comes in desire and danger, and that’s where the thriller, crime and eroticism emerge. In the film, desire, fear and enchantment are always very close to one another. It all comes naturally, such as the mangrove forest. It is something we are used to seeing every day in our city, something that is part of the territory itself.”
“The Riverbank” paints a sharp criticism of the complex, often corrupt, ties between evangelical churches and politics in Brazil. As the country gears up for a tense presidential election this coming October, how vital did it feel for the filmmakers to broach the issue onscreen?
“We recently lived through some very difficult years in Brazil because of the movement known as ‘Bolsonarismo,’” says Faria, referring to the right-leaning political and ideological movement centered around former president Jair Bolsonaro. “We watched an extremist political project take shape, bringing together authoritarian ideas, the overt persecution of minorities and artists and a highly pro-gun campaign. The country’s largest evangelical churches and religious leaders played a major role in all of this, so for us as gay men, those were years marked by great fear.”
Farias also notes a personal connection, mentioning he spent two decades within an evangelical church. “It was like watching a worldview I had once helped sustain become the political project of an entire country. The problem was that, by the time this happened, I was already on the other side of that history, suffering the consequences of those very same ideas. When you leave an institution that has shaped the way you think about your body and your relationship to desire, those marks do not simply disappear. I think the film also comes from that wound.”
Speaking about the impact of “The Secret Agent” on the film scene in Recife, and the visibility its success gave northeastern stories, Faria says it was “incredible” to watch the film’s broad reach. “I think it has sparked greater curiosity about other films being made in Recife and across Brazil.”
“It opens doors, creates new conversations and allows local professionals and projects to be seen by people who might not have been looking in our direction before,” he adds. “I think ‘The Riverbank’ is also arriving in Locarno at a moment of heightened attention around Brazilian cinema. But it is important to say that this did not begin with a single film. Recife has a very strong cinematic tradition built over many decades.” Earlier this year, Variety published an in-depth report on the history of filmmaking in the region and how the capital became a booming production and creative hub.
“The Riverbank” is a Brazilian-German co-production produced by Gatopardo Filmes, Moçambique Audiovisual, Vitrine Filmes, and Tama Filmproduktion. The film is supported by Projeto Paradiso, the World Cinema Fund, the Hubert Bals Fund, Ancine and Funcultura Audiovisual.
English (US) ·