Join Fruits on Film for the second film in its August launch series, with an introduction by Cine Brazil’s Annaís Berlim.

Produced the year Brazil legalised women’s football, Onda Nova (New Wave) follows the shambolic ‘Gayvotas’ women’s team prepare for a symbolic match against Italy. Entwined with the film’s heady eroticism and comic, chaotic plot, directors Martins and Garcia include comic critiques and outright satire of life under military dictatorship.

Banned on its first cinematic release in Brazil, this is a rare screening in the film’s recently restored glory – prepare to be swept up in a wild ride of footie, genderplay and spicy queer defiance!

A note from the Fruits on Film curators:

You could be forgiven for thinking that Martins and Garcia created Onda Nova with the prohibitions of the Brazilian censorship board as their checklist; the film runs the gamut of erotic scenes, unabashed queerness and undoubtedly scandalous subversions of gender. In one scene a character (called Potato) casually decides to get an abortion, a choice still heavily criminalised in Brazil today. These characters are so free, and act with such gay abandon, that we’re left both with hopefulness for future liberation and rage at what persists in reality.

Content warnings: Explicit sexual content, strong language, homophobia, violence.

About Annaís Berlim:

Currently the VAWG Advice Centre Coordinator & LBTQ Specialist at Latin American Women’s Aid (LAWA), a leading organisation providing vital support for Latin American women experiencing violence in England and Wales. LAWA runs the only refuges by and for Latin Americans in all Europe and the only by and for support for LGBTQ Latin She has been involved in Social Movements both locally and internationally and is a founder member of the Feminist Assembly of Latin Americans, where she co-lead community and cultural events, direct actions and many other activities plotting feminist futures and bringing the migrant perspective to feminist spaces in the city. Her Academic background in Social Sciences with focus on Cultural Policies and Management, her expertise coordinating a leading frontline service for the community and her involvement in grassroots collectives combined with her knowledge and experience on arts and culture production and management, brings a powerful understanding of how art is one of the most powerful tool to create social change and social impact. All her work is community-driven and focused on social transformation.

About Cine Brazil: 

Cine Brazil is a London-based organisation dedicated to bringing the diversity and creativity of Brazilian cinema to audiences in the UK and Europe. Through our programme, Cine Brazil aims to broaden the representation of Brazilian culture abroad, create space for meaningful connection through film, and support social impact initiatives in Brazil.

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