Showcase Kicks Off Monday in Rio de Janeiro, Running Through the 25Th With a Program Designed to Bridge the Two Countries

The 5th China-Brazil Film Showcase kicks off Monday (3) in Rio de Janeiro, running through the 25th with a program designed to bridge the two countries' cultures. Part of the Brazil-China Cultural Year, the event features 14 films, including seven Chinese titles making their Brazilian debut — among them "Operation Shadow, the latest box-office hit from martial arts legend Jackie Chan. All screenings take place at CineSystem Botafogo in the city's south zone, with free admission.

Tickets are available via Ingresso.com or at the cinema box office. Curated by businessman Arthur Chen and producer Hélio Pitanga, the showcase aims to present a side of China rarely seen abroad, far from familiar stereotypes. Highlights include "Yuan Longping: Father of Rice, a biopic about the agronomist who revolutionized rice cultivation.

"The Chinese eat a lot of rice. To feed the population, you need to produce more, and China has little land for production. He is one of China's most renowned scientists, Chen told Agência Brasil.

Documentaries spotlighting what the curators call "the China of work and technology" include "Illuminating Ali: An Engineer's Diary" and "Workers of the Belt and Road Power Grid. Chen, born in Zhejiang province but now a naturalized Brazilian, built the Chinese lineup around authenticity, diversity, and empathy. He also championed bringing "Operation Shadow" to Brazilian screens, betting on Jackie Chan's enduring popularity here.

"It's a great film. At his age, it's increasingly hard to produce. 'Operation Shadow' is his style — lots of action, Chen said, noting the actor's martial arts fight scenes.

He also flagged the animation "Big Head Son and Small Head Dad, calling it "historic" and comparing it to Brazil's beloved "Turma da Mônica" cartoons. The Brazilian selection leans into music, memory, and affection: the biopic "Mamonas Assassinas: O Filme, music documentaries "Corações a Mil" and "Belchior – Apenas um Coração Selvagem, the drama "Nosso Lar 2: Os Mensageiros, the portrait of sociologist Herbert de Souza in "Betinho – A Esperança Equilibrista, the animation "Tromba Trem: O Filme, and "Vai Pra China, Eduardo. Curators prioritized national fiction, documentaries, and animations that performed well at festivals, regardless of awards.

"Documentaries are a chance to bring audiences in for free, since they're very limited in commercial theaters. They get in via festivals. For fiction and animation, we look for films that did well at festivals but not so much commercially, giving the public a chance to see them on the big screen, Pitanga explained.

"At the same time, we boost this integration with China through film and culture. It's always about bringing national films alongside Chinese ones. This isn't a showcase exclusively for Chinese films.

This year, Rio state residents aged 18 to 29 get their own platform through the Young Filmmaker Contest, which invites submissions of 1-to-2-minute films on the theme "Year of Cultural Relations China x Brazil. "Each year we try to add something new, Pitanga said of the contest, a first for the showcase. "It's putting future professionals into the market, or those still deciding whether to study cinema.

Today there's a democratic angle — the cellphone really stimulates young people with digital, which has arrived to democratize audiovisual production. Awards will be handed out Tuesday (4) during the official opening ceremony at Palácio Tiradentes in downtown Rio, with actress Lucélia Santos in attendance. That same night, the Arara Azul Prize will be presented to all 14 participating productions.

"We're a showcase, not a festival. It's nice to honor all the Chinese and Brazilian films, their producers and directors. Whether they won a prize or not, we're recognizing the value of the work.

It's also a way to encourage the film and the content itself, Pitanga added. The showcase also includes an educational circuit in bilingual schools.