Favela Rising

fa·ve·la /fəˈvɛlə: a shantytown in or near a city, esp. in Brazil; slum area.

I’ve had this Netflix movie forever! It has just been sitting here on my coffee table begging to be watched. Life is hectic and it took me a few weeks to get to it. Last week, I forced myself to sit down in front of my 9″ X 11″ box of a TV and watched Favela Rising.

Set in Rio de Janiero, Favela Rising documents the horror and sorrow of life in the Brazilian slums. Run by teenage drug lords, neglected and dismissed by the government and media, the favela’s are war zones. Bloody shoot outs between drug lords and corrupt police officers are sad and frightening everyday occurrences for favelados (residents of favelas). Ask any 10-year-old favelado what he wants to be when he grows up, and he’ll quickly respond -a drug lord. Disparity and hopelessness reign supreme.

Out of the poverty and crime, we meet Anderson Sá-a former drug-trafficker turned social revolutionary who uses the power of hip-hop music and Afro-Brazilian dance to empower, uplift and transform his community. Growing up in one of Rio’s most dangerous favelas, Sá mourns the violent deaths of many friends and laments the iron grip drugs and crooked cops have on the majority honest and hard working folks in his neighborhood. Tired of the disparity in his community,

 Sá with the help of fellow favelados, creates Grupo Afro Reggae. With the help of volunteers, Afro Reggae organizes various classes including martial arts, percussion and dance- all with the  intent of creating new role models and hope. In the face of gang violence, death and a tragic accident, Afro Reggae triumphs; mobilizing the people and effecting significant change. The film makes many references to Shiva, the Buddhist God of destruction; reflecting on how Shiva destroys all in order to give birth to new life.

Shown in Portuguese with English subtitles, Favela Rising debuted at the Tribeca Film Festival in April 2005 and won the award for Best New Documentary Filmmaker. The film then went on to win Best Documentary Film at the New York Latino Film Festival and Best Feature Documentary from Big Sky Documentary Film Festival. Hoping to use the success of Grupo Afro Reggae to inspire community movements worldwide, filmmakers Jeff Zimbalist and Matt Mochary took the film on a six month, four continent tour, including 33 U.S cities. The film has been showed in favelas around the world from Haiti to Harlem-in hopes that like Shiva, out of death and destruction will spring life, hope and goodness.