Brazil’s VDF Showcase Makes an Exciting Return to Cannes, Highlighting a Diverse Group of Films From Fresh New Talent (EXCLUSIVE)
VDF Connection, the São Paulo-based boutique consultancy and sales agency focused on auteur and genre cinema, returns to the Cannes Film Festival’s Marché du Film with its second edition of the VDF Showcase, its training, support and international visibility platform for films in advanced stages.
The company is led by partners Mónica Trigo, a longtime international consultant and festival curator, and Javier Fernández, formerly of Blood Window, Ventana Sur’s pioneering genre platform.
“We believe this edition offers a particularly stimulating panorama, with works that engage with different genres, sensibilities, and production approaches, yet share the same commitment to risk, identity, and international projection,” Fernández and Trigo told Variety.
“All selected films previously took part in a training session designed to strengthen their materials, positioning strategy, and preparation for the Marché du Film, with the goal of arriving ready to connect with festival programmers, sales agents, and strategic partners from the international industry,” they added.
The initiative will feature 15 titles and will be divided into two complementary sections: Fantastic Cuts, featuring 7 completed and post-production feature films linked to fantasy, thriller, science fiction, and horror; and First Look, featuring 8 recently completed films spanning auteur fiction, documentary, and works of different forms, languages and scales.
The first screening will be Fantastic Cuts, held on May 16, in a session aimed for festival programmers and international sales agents. The selection brings together titles from Switzerland, Mexico, Brazil, and the United States. For its second screening, First Look brings together eight recently completed titles that share a distinctive aesthetic and narrative vision and offer a first approach to the international circuit of festivals, markets, and other distribution opportunities. The screening will take place May 18.
In addition, VDF Connection will present a line-up of three titles available for international sales. The first is “Covil” (“Beyond the Nest”), directed by Rodrigo Lages and starring Vitória Strada. The film recently closed a deal with Globoplay for distribution in Brazil, with VDF Connection handling its international sales. “Consecuencias Paralelas,” a sci-fi drama directed by Gabriel França and CD Vallada, has secured Brazilian distribution and is being handled by O2. Finally, “You’re It” (“La Mancha”) is directed by genre legends Adrián and Ramiro García Bogliano and had its world premiere at BAFICI in the Nocturna section.
FANTASTIC CUTS
“Zoom Speed,” (Jesús Magaña Vázquez, Mexico)Produced by Vázquez’s own Sobreviviente Films (“Human Resources,” “Me and the Alien”), “Zoom Speed” asks the question: “What if the pandemic never ended?” The virtual world is the only human interaction allowed and TK 84 recruits rebels to be part of a virtual space where they can live with no restrictions, diluting reality until the atmosphere becomes violent. “For me, making a science fiction film was the opportunity to delve into the genre that made me fall in love with cinema,” says Vázquez.
“Dusk, Chronicle of an Uncomfortable Visit,” (Marcos Aurelio Ramirez, Switzerland)Emma awaits her husband Heinrich’s return, but his guest, the mysterious Besalduc, instills fear in her. As Heinrich and their daughter fall ill, the woman suspects the man is a vampire. “This is a film that seeks to address harassment and intolerance in the analog era,” says Swiss-Mexican director-producer Marcos Aurelio Ramirez. Produced by ARBE Productions GmbH, Cuartito Studio Records and Art off Film.
“Under the Broken Sky,” (Luciana Malavasi, Brazil)Beatriz, a 45-year-old executive on the verge of collapse, meets Áureo dos Campos, a charismatic therapist leading an isolated community, and decides to take her son to his retreat. As she seeks healing, the community blurs the line between care and control. Malavasi says “the film explores how vulnerability, faith, and the need for belonging can be manipulated under the promise of healing, reflecting deep fractures in contemporary society.” Produced by Pulsate Filmes, Franco Produções and Maria Zimbro.
“Dark Corners 2: Safira’s Curse,” (Henrique Nuzzi, Brazil)The sequel to “Dark Corners: The Legacy of Pietra,” the film follows Beatriz, a YouTuber and paranormal investigator, and her cameraman Hermes. They are drawn to a remote farm in the Brazilian countryside while searching for the missing Clarice. “By contrasting modern digital reality with the raw power of ancestral nature, the film portrays disobedience as a path to freedom,” says Nuzzi. Produced by Nuzzi Film and Data Estelar Estúdios.
“The Taxidermist,” (Paulo M. Nascimento, Brazil/USA)In a Brooklyn apartment, a former nurse clings to her Bible as she cares for her daughter, who has been in a coma for years. When her daughter dies, she goes on a killing spree, believing she can give people eternity through taxidermy. Writer-producer-director Nascimento says the film is a “powerful, gory, slasher film in which madness turns faith into violence.” Produced by Accorde Filmes and Rose Pictures.
“Paradiso,” (Davi Revoredo, Brazil)In a dystopian Brazil where the dead remain present as corporate-controlled digital replicas, a young woman fights to keep her mother alive, even as the costs push her deeper into debt and emotional dependence. Making his feature debut as a director, Revoredo made the film entirely with a cast and crew from his hometown’s local underground scene. “It’s a bold blend of science fiction, surrealism, comedy and social drama that took nearly a decade to come to life,” he says. Produced by Com Arte Cultural.
“Beyond the Nest” (“Covil”), (Rodrigo Lages, Brazil)A young woman inherits a house marked by family disputes and discovers a hidden room concealing a terrifying secret, triggering a journey into a dark legacy tied to her past. The film “explores how silence, guilt and inheritance can trap us in invisible prisons. Through psychological horror, it examines how family secrets shape identity and the cost of confronting them,” says Lages. Produced by AVNOVE and repped by VDF Connection, the film will be released in Brazil via Globoplay, a key platform.
FIRST LOOK
“Bravo,” (Bonzo Villegas, Argentina)A fading sex worker in Northern Argentina finds a path into an elite world through an unexpected crime, drawing him closer to the man he obsessively desires. “Bravo is a character-driven film, inspired by true events, that explores masculinity as performance and confinement through a protagonist who is constantly reshaping himself to belong,” says Villegas. With the special participation of Esteban Meloni, the film is produced by Lánton, Grupo Clap and Noa Grip.
“Islanders,” (Manu Sobral, Brazil)Luana, an archaeology student, arrives on an island determined to investigate traces of missing people within a mysterious cave. The scientific journey turns into a frightening and psychedelic journey.“’Islanders’ was filmed in an environmental reserve in the most urbanized region of Brazil. It explores nature as a central character, features a predominantly female crew, and explores the language of fantasy by bringing it into dialogue with horror and fable,” says Sobral. Produced by Zarvos Estúdio and RZP Filmes.
“Where We are Safe,” (Thais Scabio, Gilberto Caetano, Brazil)A young couple, scarred by racial violence, seeks refuge in an old house in rural São Paulo, where they encounter an ancestral spirit bent on revenge. Starring Aguida Aguiar (“Ainda Estou Aqui”), directors Scabio and Caetano “sought to transform the traumas of racial violence into a sensory experience, where horror for a Black female body stems not only from the supernatural but from daily life and the lingering pain within.” Produced by Cavalo Marinho Audiovisual.
“Almost Winter,” (Rodrigo Grota, Brazil)Set in Brazil in the 1970’s, a time when the country was under a military dictatorship. Three sisters return to the farm where they were born. While reuniting with their brother, they receive a visit from soldiers and face questions and secrets from the past. “The photography, production design and soundtrack were created with the objective of reinforcing a certain timeless aspect of the plot,” says Grota. The film is for mature audiences and is “driven by real characters with real problems, joys and fears,” adds producer Guilherme Peraro. Produced by Kinopus and part of the 2025 Curitiba Lab.
“The Night of Alaíde,” (Liliane Mutti, Brazil)Alaíde Costa steps out of the Rio suburbs and into the birth of Bossa Nova, standing beside João Gilberto, Tom Jobim and Vinicius de Moraes. Starring Teka Remualdo (“3%”) as the only Black woman at the heart of the movement, she is shut out of the legendary Carnegie Hall concert. At 90, she sets out across America to take back the stage history denied her. Bossa Nova “aestheticized softness while excluding Black female bodies from its central narrative,” says Mutti. Produced by TOCA Filmes and repped by Bretz Filmes.
“The Call of Rosary,” (Reginaldo Marques Silva, Brazil)When the drums echo, entire generations speak. “The Call of Rosary” journeys through voices, bodies, and territories to reveal the strength of Black people in Brazil and the endurance of their traditions. With an ensemble cast of 40+ community members from ten municipalities in Minas Gerais, “the film becomes both a historical document and an act of memory, preserving for present and future generations the ongoing struggle for rights, recognition and permanence,” says Marques Silva. Produced by Instituto Gesto.
“My Dear Alice,” (Rogério Sagui, Brazil)Alice is a rural teacher living on a farm with her adoptive parents, but the unexpected return of her siblings transforms the house into a true nightmare. After suffering a brutal attempted femicide and discovering that her father was forcibly taken away, Alice will have to fight to rescue him and rebuild her own life. Sagui says “the story stands out for transforming a family drama into an intense psychological thriller, where the threat originates from within the family itself.” Produced by Kalimann Produções and RY Produções.
“Law Version,” (Ninna Fachinello, Brazil)A lawyer specializing in the defense of women sees her professional boundaries ethically strained as she becomes involved in the case of a single mother cornered by her ex-partner. Confronting the limits of the law in the face of a violence the system insists on not recognizing, Fachinello says the film “was born from my own experience, but I quickly realized I was telling the story of thousands of mothers.” Financed by Ancine and BRDE, the cast features Tati Villela, Mariana Xavier and Portuguese actor Pedro Carvalho. Produced by ColetivA DELAS.
The company is led by partners Mónica Trigo, a longtime international consultant and festival curator, and Javier Fernández, formerly of Blood Window, Ventana Sur’s pioneering genre platform.
“We believe this edition offers a particularly stimulating panorama, with works that engage with different genres, sensibilities, and production approaches, yet share the same commitment to risk, identity, and international projection,” Fernández and Trigo told Variety.
“All selected films previously took part in a training session designed to strengthen their materials, positioning strategy, and preparation for the Marché du Film, with the goal of arriving ready to connect with festival programmers, sales agents, and strategic partners from the international industry,” they added.
The initiative will feature 15 titles and will be divided into two complementary sections: Fantastic Cuts, featuring 7 completed and post-production feature films linked to fantasy, thriller, science fiction, and horror; and First Look, featuring 8 recently completed films spanning auteur fiction, documentary, and works of different forms, languages and scales.
The first screening will be Fantastic Cuts, held on May 16, in a session aimed for festival programmers and international sales agents. The selection brings together titles from Switzerland, Mexico, Brazil, and the United States. For its second screening, First Look brings together eight recently completed titles that share a distinctive aesthetic and narrative vision and offer a first approach to the international circuit of festivals, markets, and other distribution opportunities. The screening will take place May 18.
In addition, VDF Connection will present a line-up of three titles available for international sales. The first is “Covil” (“Beyond the Nest”), directed by Rodrigo Lages and starring Vitória Strada. The film recently closed a deal with Globoplay for distribution in Brazil, with VDF Connection handling its international sales. “Consecuencias Paralelas,” a sci-fi drama directed by Gabriel França and CD Vallada, has secured Brazilian distribution and is being handled by O2. Finally, “You’re It” (“La Mancha”) is directed by genre legends Adrián and Ramiro García Bogliano and had its world premiere at BAFICI in the Nocturna section.
FANTASTIC CUTS
“Zoom Speed,” (Jesús Magaña Vázquez, Mexico)Produced by Vázquez’s own Sobreviviente Films (“Human Resources,” “Me and the Alien”), “Zoom Speed” asks the question: “What if the pandemic never ended?” The virtual world is the only human interaction allowed and TK 84 recruits rebels to be part of a virtual space where they can live with no restrictions, diluting reality until the atmosphere becomes violent. “For me, making a science fiction film was the opportunity to delve into the genre that made me fall in love with cinema,” says Vázquez.
“Dusk, Chronicle of an Uncomfortable Visit,” (Marcos Aurelio Ramirez, Switzerland)Emma awaits her husband Heinrich’s return, but his guest, the mysterious Besalduc, instills fear in her. As Heinrich and their daughter fall ill, the woman suspects the man is a vampire. “This is a film that seeks to address harassment and intolerance in the analog era,” says Swiss-Mexican director-producer Marcos Aurelio Ramirez. Produced by ARBE Productions GmbH, Cuartito Studio Records and Art off Film.
“Under the Broken Sky,” (Luciana Malavasi, Brazil)Beatriz, a 45-year-old executive on the verge of collapse, meets Áureo dos Campos, a charismatic therapist leading an isolated community, and decides to take her son to his retreat. As she seeks healing, the community blurs the line between care and control. Malavasi says “the film explores how vulnerability, faith, and the need for belonging can be manipulated under the promise of healing, reflecting deep fractures in contemporary society.” Produced by Pulsate Filmes, Franco Produções and Maria Zimbro.
“Dark Corners 2: Safira’s Curse,” (Henrique Nuzzi, Brazil)The sequel to “Dark Corners: The Legacy of Pietra,” the film follows Beatriz, a YouTuber and paranormal investigator, and her cameraman Hermes. They are drawn to a remote farm in the Brazilian countryside while searching for the missing Clarice. “By contrasting modern digital reality with the raw power of ancestral nature, the film portrays disobedience as a path to freedom,” says Nuzzi. Produced by Nuzzi Film and Data Estelar Estúdios.
“The Taxidermist,” (Paulo M. Nascimento, Brazil/USA)In a Brooklyn apartment, a former nurse clings to her Bible as she cares for her daughter, who has been in a coma for years. When her daughter dies, she goes on a killing spree, believing she can give people eternity through taxidermy. Writer-producer-director Nascimento says the film is a “powerful, gory, slasher film in which madness turns faith into violence.” Produced by Accorde Filmes and Rose Pictures.
“Paradiso,” (Davi Revoredo, Brazil)In a dystopian Brazil where the dead remain present as corporate-controlled digital replicas, a young woman fights to keep her mother alive, even as the costs push her deeper into debt and emotional dependence. Making his feature debut as a director, Revoredo made the film entirely with a cast and crew from his hometown’s local underground scene. “It’s a bold blend of science fiction, surrealism, comedy and social drama that took nearly a decade to come to life,” he says. Produced by Com Arte Cultural.
“Beyond the Nest” (“Covil”), (Rodrigo Lages, Brazil)A young woman inherits a house marked by family disputes and discovers a hidden room concealing a terrifying secret, triggering a journey into a dark legacy tied to her past. The film “explores how silence, guilt and inheritance can trap us in invisible prisons. Through psychological horror, it examines how family secrets shape identity and the cost of confronting them,” says Lages. Produced by AVNOVE and repped by VDF Connection, the film will be released in Brazil via Globoplay, a key platform.
FIRST LOOK
“Bravo,” (Bonzo Villegas, Argentina)A fading sex worker in Northern Argentina finds a path into an elite world through an unexpected crime, drawing him closer to the man he obsessively desires. “Bravo is a character-driven film, inspired by true events, that explores masculinity as performance and confinement through a protagonist who is constantly reshaping himself to belong,” says Villegas. With the special participation of Esteban Meloni, the film is produced by Lánton, Grupo Clap and Noa Grip.
“Islanders,” (Manu Sobral, Brazil)Luana, an archaeology student, arrives on an island determined to investigate traces of missing people within a mysterious cave. The scientific journey turns into a frightening and psychedelic journey.“’Islanders’ was filmed in an environmental reserve in the most urbanized region of Brazil. It explores nature as a central character, features a predominantly female crew, and explores the language of fantasy by bringing it into dialogue with horror and fable,” says Sobral. Produced by Zarvos Estúdio and RZP Filmes.
“Where We are Safe,” (Thais Scabio, Gilberto Caetano, Brazil)A young couple, scarred by racial violence, seeks refuge in an old house in rural São Paulo, where they encounter an ancestral spirit bent on revenge. Starring Aguida Aguiar (“Ainda Estou Aqui”), directors Scabio and Caetano “sought to transform the traumas of racial violence into a sensory experience, where horror for a Black female body stems not only from the supernatural but from daily life and the lingering pain within.” Produced by Cavalo Marinho Audiovisual.
“Almost Winter,” (Rodrigo Grota, Brazil)Set in Brazil in the 1970’s, a time when the country was under a military dictatorship. Three sisters return to the farm where they were born. While reuniting with their brother, they receive a visit from soldiers and face questions and secrets from the past. “The photography, production design and soundtrack were created with the objective of reinforcing a certain timeless aspect of the plot,” says Grota. The film is for mature audiences and is “driven by real characters with real problems, joys and fears,” adds producer Guilherme Peraro. Produced by Kinopus and part of the 2025 Curitiba Lab.
“The Night of Alaíde,” (Liliane Mutti, Brazil)Alaíde Costa steps out of the Rio suburbs and into the birth of Bossa Nova, standing beside João Gilberto, Tom Jobim and Vinicius de Moraes. Starring Teka Remualdo (“3%”) as the only Black woman at the heart of the movement, she is shut out of the legendary Carnegie Hall concert. At 90, she sets out across America to take back the stage history denied her. Bossa Nova “aestheticized softness while excluding Black female bodies from its central narrative,” says Mutti. Produced by TOCA Filmes and repped by Bretz Filmes.
“The Call of Rosary,” (Reginaldo Marques Silva, Brazil)When the drums echo, entire generations speak. “The Call of Rosary” journeys through voices, bodies, and territories to reveal the strength of Black people in Brazil and the endurance of their traditions. With an ensemble cast of 40+ community members from ten municipalities in Minas Gerais, “the film becomes both a historical document and an act of memory, preserving for present and future generations the ongoing struggle for rights, recognition and permanence,” says Marques Silva. Produced by Instituto Gesto.
“My Dear Alice,” (Rogério Sagui, Brazil)Alice is a rural teacher living on a farm with her adoptive parents, but the unexpected return of her siblings transforms the house into a true nightmare. After suffering a brutal attempted femicide and discovering that her father was forcibly taken away, Alice will have to fight to rescue him and rebuild her own life. Sagui says “the story stands out for transforming a family drama into an intense psychological thriller, where the threat originates from within the family itself.” Produced by Kalimann Produções and RY Produções.
“Law Version,” (Ninna Fachinello, Brazil)A lawyer specializing in the defense of women sees her professional boundaries ethically strained as she becomes involved in the case of a single mother cornered by her ex-partner. Confronting the limits of the law in the face of a violence the system insists on not recognizing, Fachinello says the film “was born from my own experience, but I quickly realized I was telling the story of thousands of mothers.” Financed by Ancine and BRDE, the cast features Tati Villela, Mariana Xavier and Portuguese actor Pedro Carvalho. Produced by ColetivA DELAS.