From artists to food, music, dance and martial arts, the fifth-annual “Fome de Filme” (Hunger of Film) event introduced an up-close dose of Brazilian culture to FAU students.
This cultural event, created by language and linguistics professor Luis Duno-Gottberg, will concentrate on several Brazilian films – old and new – not normally viewed outside its country.
“I want to get students involved in culture,” Duno-Gottberg, director of the Caribbean and Latin American Studies program, said. “I want to create a space for intellectual, political and cultural knowledge among those students.”
Duno-Gottberg and his co-organizer, communication assistant professor Chris Robí_, chose Brazil because it was the third in a trio of countries that had a strong international standing. The others were Argentina and Mexico, held the previous two years.
On opening night, the College of Business building was packed with over 200 people. Also in attendance were Topazio Capoeira, a local Brazilian martial arts group practicing a dance and game called Capoeira; and Eric Perna, a local Brazilian painter.
Liz Peterson, Perna’s agent has described Perna as resembling – in both style and habit – Pablo Picasso, the Spanish painter famous for starting the Cubism movement. Perna is an insomniac and only paints in the dead of night, even staying awake into the wee hours of the morning to complete his works of art.
“He is never happy with [his own paintings],” said Peterson. “If you scrape away the layers of Eric’s paintings, you will find many others underneath. Picasso did the same thing.”
Duno-Gottberg and Robí_ tend to pick films they believe will create cultural understanding; this time around, such Brazilian films included political revolution and those that focus on middle to lower classes.
Fome de Filme, along with the other five film festivals Duno-Gottberg and Robí_ have put on, take an entire year to organize. The very moment the previous year’s event ends, the two professors prepare for the next one. The rarity of several featured films plays a huge part in the delay, said Duno-Gottberg.
The logistics of simply accessing the films were actually very strenuous. Duno-Gottberg first had to convince filmmakers he wasn’t trying to scam them, and once they wanted to talk, he had to convince them to turn over one-of-a-kind film reels for a U.S. screening.
Duno-Gottberg is happy with his film selections this year; he doesn’t always get the ones he wants, but manages to acquire a few can’t be seen in the U.S.
Duno-Gottberg even spoke to Brazil’s consulate, who helped by contacting filmmakers in the country. The consulate even paid for the five traditional Brazilian dishes prepared by Chartwells on opening night: Musse de Maracuja (a sweet, yellow mousse), P,o de Queijo (cheese bread), Empadas de Frango (chicken-stuffed pastry), Strogonoff de Carne (beef stronganoff) and Pave.
“Things should be done the authentic way,” said Ignacio Domminguez, an executive chef for Chartwells. “Don’t tweak with the ingredients. It catches the customer’s taste buds and they like it more.”
Many FAU students attended the opening of the festival.
“I took a world music course where I learned about Brazilian Samba,” said journalism major Ivan Berliant. “That got me interested in culture and this [event] helped me further my knowledge of the culture in an artistic sense.”
The festival cost $40,000 dollars, however, much of the costs are covered by donations. The rest of that money came from Duno-Gottberg’s pocket.
There were 1,000 people in attendance last year, but both professors are predicting it will double by festival’s end.
Next Screenings:
North Country Regional Public Library – www.pbclibrary.org/branch-ncr.htmSaturday, April 26, 2 p.m.; Bye Bye BrazilTuesday, April 29, 6:30 p.m.; Vidas Secas
West Atlantic Avenue Branch Library – www.pbclibrary.org/branch-waa.htmSaturday, May 2, 2 p.m.; Dona Flor E Seus Dois Maridos
Full film schedule available at www.fau.edu/artsandlettersnews/fe.php
