By Chesney Hearst, Senior Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Director Emílio Domingos’ award-winning documentary “A Batalha do Passinho” (Battle of the Little Step) will premiere in Rio de Janeiro’s movie theaters on Friday, October 11th. In anticipation of the event, Festival Multiplicidade, will present a reconstructed performance of the film in “A Batalha do Passinho Remix” at Flamengo’s Oi Futuro cultural space on Thursday, October 3rd.
During the event, Spanish multimedia artist Alvaro Uña will remix footage from “A Batalha do Passinho” as the very special guests, passinho (little step) dancers, Cebolinha, Yuri, TK, João Pedro, Camarão Preto and Pablinho, perform. Uña is known for his artistic and interactive software programming.
“In the remix, we will merge images from the film with the presentation of dancers,” director Emílio Domingos told The Rio Times. “They and the passinho have a beautiful story. I am proud to have been able to tell it through the film.”
First shown during the 2012 Festival do Rio (Rio International Film Festival), where it won the Redentor trophy for Best Film to Show New Directions, Domingos’ documentary depicts the beginnings and expansion of the dance known as the passinho.
Originating in Rio’s favelas in 2007, the passinho was a new style of dance performed to the rhythm of funk Carioca, a combination of Miami bass and freestyle music that is popular in Brazil. The passinho has become a cultural phenomenon in recent years.
Major inter-community dance-offs known as “Batalha do Passinho” (Battle of the Little Step) are now being held in pacified communities, with the passinho dancers competing for cash prizes worth up to R$10,000.
However, Domingos started filming the cultural phenomenon when it was relatively unknown. “The film was made without any sponsorships,” said Domingos. “We have had the support of many professionals who have worked voluntarily and producers and companies who helped in the process of [making the film]. It was a great collective effort.”
“But funk (funk Carioca) and funkeiros (funk artists) still suffer from a lot of prejudice in our society,” Domingos said, adding that he hopes his “film will help to reduce this.”
The “remix” performance at Oi Futuro in Flamengo is part of Festival Multiplicidade, Batman Zavareze’s effort to bring national and international talents together to create a truly multimedia experience for audiences in the city of Rio.
What: Festival Multiplicidade presents “A Batalha do Passinho Remix”
When: Thursday, October 3rd at 8PM
Where: Oi Futuro Flamengo, Dois de Dezembro Street 63 – Flamengo
Telephone: (21) 3131-3060
Tickets: R$ 20, R$10 for students
Read more (in Portuguese).
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