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Goitaca

Set in the depths of an ancient Jungle, an unknown Indigenous tribe faces a perilous future after scraping a win in a battle against one of the most fearsome and powerful tribes known as the “Goitaca".
Knowing that one day the Goitaca of whom had escaped the unknown tribe's spears, would soon return to take revenge for their fallen kin, Shaman Bacuara calls a meeting of the tribe's leaders.
It is decided that the tribe are to migrate closer to the waterfalls of the ancient spirit Iara, Mother of Water. The unknown Tribe make an offering to her in return for her protection, to live peacefully in their new lands.
We then follow the story of the protagonist, Candea as he grows up through life. As the years go by, warriors of the unknown tribe begin to fall victim to the chant of Iara.

  • Rodrigo Rodrigues
    Director
  • Rodrigo Rodrigues
    Writer
  • Rodrigo Rodrigues
    Producer
  • Marlon Blue
    Key Cast
    "Candea"
  • Leandro Firmino
    Key Cast
    "Goitaca Chief"
    City of God
  • Christianne Oliveira
    Key Cast
    "Camapua"
    Chocolat
  • Lady Francisco
    Key Cast
    "Mother Ci"
  • Luciano Szafir
    Key Cast
    "Maracajaguacu"
  • Rodrigo Rodrigues
    Key Cast
    "Shaman Bacuara"
    Imeacht Na N'Iarlaí
  • Project Type:
    Feature
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 18 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    August 12, 2020
  • Country of Origin:
    Brazil
  • Country of Filming:
    Brazil
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    RED RAW 5k / Apple ProRes 422 4K
  • Aspect Ratio:
    FLAT (1.85:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Rodrigo Rodrigues

Rodrigo Rodrigues was born in São Paulo, Brazil, to an Afro-French father and Brazilian mother with Spanish, Portuguese and Italian origins.

Rodrigo's mother moved to a small city of 5,000 inhabitants at the time, called Itupeva, where for the first time Rodrigo and his siblings could get out of the house to play, not worrying of the violence that they had experienced, in Sao Paulo City. Then Rodrigo was introduced to the performing arts at age of seven by his mother, who founded an amateur theatre company for the community. Rodrigo began to perform regularly in plays and at the age of 13, Rodrigo started his first recognised Drama school, traveling everyday to a neighbouring city. In between these years, Rodrigo used to organise with help of his mother, a cinema screening in his city Itupeva, for the community that had no access to a cinema.

In 1993, he attended a drama school “Escola de Arte Dramática de Jundiaí”, performing a total of 400 hours of theatre presentations.

By the age of 17, Rodrigo wrote, produced, directed and acted in a monologue festival and was awarded best actor. This won him an acting school scholarship, which meant he did not have to take part in the obligatory military service, which would have been Rodrigo's worst nightmare at the time. Since then Rodrigo dedicated his studies to Drama, passing by different schools and courses, which included “Escola de Teatro Ewerton de Castro”.

In the late 1990s, Rodrigo worked for an educational local TV channel, called TVE de Jundiai of Jundiai, as a writer and presenter, in collaboration with other crew of the channel. Rodrigo also opened a production company that used to produce corporative and educational videos, for the City council of Jundiai City. Rodrigo then collaborated with Rose Cereser, winning the Volvo best Educational video and Theatre Projects, which was directed and produced by him. This also included 18 Educational videos, 4 plays and an Auditorium TV competition, produced for the local schools, broadcasted live on TVE de Jundiai.

Rodrigo moved to Ireland in 2002, where he directed and produced music videos, theatre and worked as an actor in TV, film and theatre. All his life work experiences, then led him to write, produce and direct his first feature film called Goitaca, that took a few years to get from script to its completion.

In 2010, Rodrigo Rodrigues Studios, previously called Paraty Studios, was founded by Rodrigo with the help of Fergal Fitzgerald. A visionary film making space, open for all kinds of visionary art, located in the middle of the Atlantic forest in Brazil. All sets, costumes and props are made of recycled and organic materials to support life on earth which is part of Rodrigo´s environment activism and human development to educate locals and visitors, on how to live with respect towards planet Earth. The accommodations were part of Rodrigo Rodrigues Studios´s previous pilot experimental projects sets, recycled and transformed into wood cabins and tree houses for actors, crew and visitors during their stay.

The studio is where the feature film Goitaca, was partially produced, in which all sets and costumes have been made out of recycled and organic materials.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

Going back in time, in 1996, I was a young man moving towards my own creative journey. I was alone, sitting on the edge of a cliff, looking down into the jungle. Somehow, the energy of my surroundings gave me the inspiration to write a story about indigenous culture and their beliefs, I never thought that one day it would become my first feature film Goitaca Script. At the time in the 90s where I came from, to be a film director, it was just for Hollywood people.
So my story back then became a theatre show, which I produced and directed and also played the many character of the play. Without any government funding, I created my own set and costumes from recycled material (rubbish) that I collected from the streets of my neighbourhood. As the production was getting serious, the local community got involved creating a workforce more powerful than any funding I could think of, using whatever we could, to make it possible. At the end we won a Brazilian State award “1998 Sao Paulo Cultural Map” for the best amateur theatre show in Campinas region, competing against university shows.
My character was an old Shaman, a healer, that at the time, I was too young to understand how much I was influenced by indigenous culture, but I knew that a message had to be given and it prevails in my film Goitaca, were I play the same character. I was experiencing the power of expressing my voice through art and at the same time supporting the natural world that the indigenous people have, that many do not understand, calling them primitive. In that time I already understood that we have being destroying, the beauty of this world, the wisdom of those that hold the secret of humanity, guarded inside our mother nature. With the film Goitaca, I intend to use the same voice, together with the indigenous people from Brazil, that many years pass by and we are still destroying the world, telling their story is a way I found, to reinforce their importance and of their way of living.
In 2010, I found myself alone and back in the jungle in Brazil. I felt a strong connection with the jungle and this inspired and pushed me to come up with the script for Goitaca, using the same characters from the play I wrote back in 1996. The story repeated in exactly the same way from back then, the same voice in the name of the indigenous and with no funding.

I could write here forever, telling stories of how difficult it was to finish this film and the pressure I felt to get it finished, as most film makers go trough I suspect, overcoming my own demons of self inferiority and to let go the idea that I would not be skilled enough to finish my first feature film. But I had what was the most important to keep me going and that was a message and the trust of beautiful people working on the project. I promised my own self that after many years trying to start the production, it would be my last chance to do so, and I was not going to stop, no matter what happened.

The many character of the film is Candéa, an indigenous warrior that will have to overcome his own demons to put an end to an expected “war” between tribes, and succeed to fight against the Goitaca, not forgetting that a true warrior does not fight among or against their own self. Every other single character of this film Goitaca, was based on some real indigenous stories, written in the form of fiction, but throughout my experiences I had with Shamans in different parts of the world, indigenous wisdom holds the true secrets of humanity.

To finalise I would like to propose to whatever festival that chooses my film, with my own costs I intend to bring some of the indigenous leaders from the rainforest of Brazil, to the film screening, to help them speak out against the injustice they are facing at the moment in Brazil. This film is a way of protecting our tribes and our jungles.
Follow our journey, here are our links
https://www.facebook.com/GoitacaFeatureFilm
https://www.instagram.com/goitaca_film/
Film Trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8gL3GWBsos

www.goitaca.co.uk
Rodrigo Rodrigues
Actor/Director/Producer
Mobile: +44 7517 315750
Rodrigo Rodrigues Studios
https://www.filmeitaliano.com
https://www.goitaca.co.uk
https://www.rodrigorodrigues.co.uk
Visual Effects Student at University of West London
UK/Brazil