Brazilian film industry’s resurgence helped by foreign co-producers

Brazilian director Heitor Dhalia was delighted and profoundly relieved to finally see his movie ‘Drifting’ screened this month. The completion of the film based partially on his childhood ended an emotionally grueling two-year gestation. But Dhalia’s $3.4-million-budget picture, which opens early next year, is also part and parcel of a co-production trend gathering steam in the Brazilian film industry. His movie was partnered with Universal Studios, one of the many foreign producers coming to Brazil to make deals. The co-productions are a sign of the Brazilian film industry’s growing prestige and its emergence from two decades in the financial doldrums. Once among the most active in Latin America, the nation’s filmmaking industry was decimated by devaluations, hyperinflation and shifting government policies.