Presente de Natal (partially found Brazilian animated film; 1971)

Status: Partially found

Tags: Brazil

Presente de Natal (lit. Christmas Gift) is a 1971 Brazilian animated film directed and produced by Álvaro Henrique Gonçalves. It is the second animated feature film and the first in color in the country's history. In the movie, João and Miriam are the children of a poor manual worker, who has no way to present them with sophisticated items. Instead, the brothers win a trip to an amusement park. At night, when they are already asleep, Santa Claus appears and invites them on a trip, with the purpose of knowing all of Brazil, in the company of Saci Pererê. After the excursion, the boys wake up and tell their parents about it.

Presente de Natal was made entirely in traditional animation by Álvaro Henrique Gonçalves. He self-produced the film for six years, with no incentive from any company or government. It was first shown in Cine Avenida in Manaus, state of Amazonas, on February 1st, and was well received. However, its popularity was restricted to that city; since then, the film has remained largely unknown.

On January 21, 2023, Heitor Victor published an interview with Álvaro's son, Álvaro Brants Gonçalves, which included snippets from the film.

Videos

Video (in Portuguese) about the subject by Heitor Victor.

Heitor Victor's interview with Álvaro's son, which includes snippets from the film.

External links

• Article about the history of animation in Brazil, which talks about the subject
• 1971 magazine talking about the film (pp. 44–49)
• Portuguese Wikipedia page about the film