A minute after the 1976 Brazilian hit telenovela “Slave Isaura” (“Esclava Isaura”) attracted a record-breaking audience of more than 300 million viewers in China, RioFilme aims to steal the show this year with three titles announced at the 28th Shanghai International Film Festival.
“Slave Izaura” Provided by: RioFilme
Sponsored by the National Film Board, “O Deserto de Luiza” will compete for the golden cup in the festival’s main competition, while “A Fabulosa Máquina do Tempo” will be shown in the documentary sidebar and “Heart of Darkness” (Coração das Trevas) will be shown in animation.
Riofilm, led by president Leonardo Edde, also aims to put Rio de Janeiro firmly on the film map and hopes to boost business in the Asian powerhouse.
Leonardo Edde, President of Riofilm
“One of my main goals is to bring new opportunities back to Rio and help attract larger international co-productions. We already have a strong production services department, but we want to go beyond that and become a hub for large-scale co-productions as well,” he told Variety.
Recent films in Rio include Godzilla vs. Kong – New Empire and the Netflix action series Man on Fire, starring Emmy Award-winner Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Alice Braga. In the past few years, the coastal city has hosted the fifth and tenth Fast & Furious films, The Expendables, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1, and more.
Another objective is to increase exports by exporting Brazilian content and intellectual property, as well as providing production services.
“That’s one of the reasons I’m going to Shanghai. Many countries and companies are now looking to enter the Chinese market, but our interest goes beyond just accessing the Chinese market. We also want to attract Chinese investment to Rio,” he said, adding, “Our industries have a lot of similarities. We have in common that we see the audiovisual sector as a driver of economic growth, especially through technology, innovation, and infrastructure. We are going to Shanghai to start that conversation, explore potential partnerships, and better understand what we can build together.”
Rio de Janeiro’s goal to further strengthen its film and television industry has become even more concrete following a new investment package announced by Rio Mayor Eduardo Cavaliere at confab Rio2C in May.
The package, worth $30 million in 2026 and $43 million in 2027/28, includes public policy, grant programs and initiatives.
Ede pointed out that the creative economy already accounts for 5.2% of Rio de Janeiro state’s GDP, making it one of the strongest creative economies in Brazil.
From 2021 to the first quarter of 2026, Rio de Janeiro City Hall has invested approximately $54.5 million in more than 600 audiovisual projects through RioFilme.
In addition to its production power, Rio is a major market for Brazilian films, accounting for 71% of average attendance and 70% of box office revenue from 1995 to 2024. In 2024, Rio state will release 68 films, nearly matching the all-time record set in 2017.
Later this year, Rio will once again offer the Cash Rebate Grant, a rolling program with a $3 million budget to support audiovisual productions. Eligible Brazilian productions and international projects outside of Rio can receive a rebate of up to 30% of eligible local expenses, and productions with Rio de Janeiro as their primary filming location can receive a rebate of up to 35%.
Founded in 1992, what started as a distribution company has grown into what it is today: an agency with a mission to grow Rio’s audiovisual industry, from development and production to distribution and exhibition. Following South Korea’s model, it is offering movie vouchers to youth in public schools with the aim of restoring attendance to at least pre-coronavirus levels.
The 28th Shanghai International Film Festival will open on June 12th and end on June 21st.
