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Matt Mochary, a social activist, wanted to share the “wonderful” things that he had seen in the favelas of Brazil.

The best way to do that, he felt, was to create a film — the result of which screens this weekend at the Bermuda International Film Festival. Mochary said: “I have been involved in social activism for a while and I wanted to be able to share the things that I was seeing, because the things that I was seeing were so wonderful that I wanted to share them with my friends and maybe a little bit of the world. That’s what got me into film, as a storytelling vehicle.”

Having travelled to Brazil, Mohary met Anderson Sá and his afro-reggae dance group. He felt that his was a story that “definitely needed to be told”, but quickly realized that he needed someone with more filmmaking skills than he. He found the best filmmaker he knew — his former teacher at the New York Film Academy, Jeff Zimbalist. Mochary said: “I called him up and made him a great offer — “Jeff, I want you to quit your $50,000 a year job, take no money, and come make a film with a former student of yours.” Miraculously, he said yes.”

“It’s any filmmaker’s dream to get the call Jeff got, because it was someone he trusted telling him an amazing situation, an amazing story. That’s all a filmmaker looks for is an amazing story.”

Mochary added that both he and Zimbalist are interested in telling success stories about communities that are typically viewed as third world and non-functioning. For Favela Rising, they spent three years creating the film from beginning to end. Favela Rising is about two leaders of a movement, in the slums of Rio, called AfroReggae. Anderson Sa, one of the leaders, is a former drug-trafficker who wants to counteract the violent oppression enforced by teenage drug armies and sustained by corrupt police in his community. Just as the movement is at the height of its success, a tragic accident threatens to change everything.

Mochary and Zimbalist shot over 200 hours of footage in the favela, spending many months living in Brazil.

“We had access wherever and whenever we wanted, because afro-reggae is so respected in the favelas, that they were able to get us permission from literally whatever we wanted to do.”

The film had its first theatrical release in London earlier this month, and will be shown in theatres around the world.

“We’ve shown this movie to many audiences, and the [group] that is most gratifying for me to have see it are people from underserved communities, whether they’re in Brazil or Harlem or Compton in Los Angeles. I’ve been at all of those screenings as well as the festival screenings where the wealthier crowds have seen the film, and while I’m very grateful that the wealthy crowds see the film, there’s no question that the people who relate to this film most emotionally are people who live in underserved communities. It’s inspirational and emotional for them.”

Using their own money, Mochary and Zimbalist are trying to bring the film to communities across the United States that they see as underserved. They also hope to take the film around the world in the same manner.

Favela Rising screens on March 17 at 9:30pm at the Little Theatre and March 19 at 6:30pm at the Tradewinds Auditorium.[[In-content Ad]]

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