Amazonas, o Maior Rio do Mundo (found Brazilian documentary film; 1918-1920)
One scene from the film.
Status: Found
Date found: 2023
Found by: Cinemateca Národní Filmový Archiv
Amazonas, o Maior Rio do Mundo (Amazon, the Longest River in the World in English) is a Brazilian documentary film produced between 1918 and 1920 directed by Silvino Santos, one of the first filmmakers to record the Amazon.[1]
Production
In 1917, with the support of the State Government and in collaboration with Manoel Gonçalves, Santos founded the production company "Amazônia Cine-Film". The following year, Santos produced the producer's first and only feature film, called "Amazonas, o Maior Rio do Mundo". The recording took place over 3 years.
Disappearance of the film
In an autobiography that was never published, Santos says that the film was stolen by a former collaborator of the filmmaker, Propércio de Mello Saraiva, who was negotiating the international sale of the film.
After obtaining the negatives, Saraiva claimed to be the director responsible for the film and renamed it "Wonders of the Amazon" and negotiated distribution to England, where the documentary was first shown, and later had a good reception in Europe.
Synopsis
A record of the various cultural and natural manifestations that take place along the course of the Amazon River. Traveling from Pará to Peru, the film shows popular festivals such as the Círio de Nazaré, plantations, natural beauty, the life of the city and the indigenous people who inhabited the region.
Discovery
Like many films from this era, "Amazonas, o Maior Rio do Mundo" was considered a lost film for years, but in 2023 the film was found in the archives of the Národní Filmový Archiv, a cinema library located in Prague, Czech Republic.[2]
The film was cataloged incorrectly, described as an American production dated 1925. After analyzes carried out by researchers, including silent film specialist Jay Weissberg, it was concluded that the film that was found in the cinema library was in fact "Amazonas, o Maior Rio do Mundo".
See Also
Brazilian Films
- Acabaram-se os Otários (partially found Brazilian comedy film; 1929)
- Apuros do Genésio (found Brazilian comedy short film; 1940)
- Luiz de Barros (partially found films from Brazilian director; 1916-1977)
- Nhô Anastácio Chegou de Viagem (lost Brazilian first comedy film; 1908)
- O Kaiser (lost Brazilian first animated film; 1917)
- Os Óculos do Vovô (partially found Brazilian film; 1913)
- Presente de Natal (partially found Brazilian animated film; 1971)
- Um Crime Sensacional (lost Brazilian drama film; 1913)
- Vittorio Di Maio (lost films from Italian director; existence unconfirmed; 1897)
- Vocação Irresistível aka "The Most Mysterious Film in Brazil" (lost Brazilian comedy film; 1924)