UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State University Libraries and the Department of Spanish, Italian and Portuguese, have announced a Brazilian film series featuring three films — by Brazilian filmmakers — that respond to current social, political and economic issues in their country.

The series kicks off on Thursday, Feb. 9, at 6 p.m. with the 2018 film, "The Trial (O processo)," directed by Maria Augusta Ramos, in Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library on the University Park campus. Subsequent viewings all take place on Thursdays at 6 p.m. in Foster Auditorium. Film series viewings and discussions are free and open to the public.

The films included in the series explore how legacies of slavery and dictatorship persist in contemporary Brazil in forms of inequality, racism, political instability and challenges to democratic institutions. Released between 2012 and 2019, these works speak to the various crises that Brazil has faced over the past decade, including 2013 protests of the passo livre ("free fair") movement for more accessible and affordable public transit, the impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff in 2016, the rise of the far-right and presidential election of Jair Bolsonaro in 2018, and the continued threats to Brazil's young democracy.

With these screenings and subsequent discussions, the series hopes to foster a broader awareness of Brazil's current reality and the creative ways in which artists are dialoguing with these events and experiences. The full lineup of films in the series include:

• Feb. 9 — “The Trial (O processo,)” (2018) is a riveting behind-the-scenes look at the impeachment trial of Brazil's first female President, Dilma Rousseff. Maria Augusta Ramos, Director.
• March 2 — “Marighella,” (2019) set in 1969, this drama depicts a moment in the life of Afro-Brazilian revolutionary and politician Carlos Marighella. Wagner Moura, Director.
• April 6 — "Neighboring Sounds (O soma o redor,)” (2012) a film that examines the anxieties, relationships, and interconnected lives in a middle-class neighborhood of Recife. Kleber Mendonça Filho, director.

For more information and questions about the Brazilian Film Series, including physical access and special accommodations for these events, please contact Krista Brune, associate professor of Portuguese, at kbrune@psu.edu or Manuel Ostos, University Libraries curator of romance language, Latin American, and Latinx collections at mostos@psu.edu.