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ºBASED (IN)
Los Angeles, CA
Silver Lake

34.0906, -118.2774

As a powerful storm sweeps through Southeast Mexico, a family takes refuge in their small meatshop. In the dead of night, their grandmother weaves an ancient tale of the Xtbay—a spirit born of grief and longing—to help them confront their fears and hold onto hope as their father is lost in the storm.

This short film emerged from a filmmaking lab in the Yucatán Peninsula, led by Pedro Costa. Participants developed, shot, and edited their projects on location, collaborating with local non-actors and drawing inspiration from the region. Blending fiction and reality, the film captures the resilience of family amidst the Yucatán’s raw beauty and cultural depth.

In Brazil, a country where religious freedom is under attack and racism is a systemic issue, a Nigerian professor and his community fight to prove their god Èṣù is not the Devil.

Esu is a popular African deity of thousands of years and we might never know its exact origin. But it is possible to understand how Esu went from being a God in Africa to becoming the Devil in Brazil. This tragic story, that passes through colonization and slavery, has not ended yet. “Esu & The Universe” follows the complex path of a culture turned into resistance over the course of several centuries.

FESTIVALS:

• Best Documentary Jury Award at the Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival (2022).

• Best Documentary Audience Award at the 49th São Paulo International Film Festival (2022).

• 62 Cartagena International Film Festival (2023)

• LALIFF - Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (2023)

MARKETS/LABS:

• Points North Fellowship

• "Only in NY" Industry Meetings at the DOC NYC.

• Latino Media Market - NALIP Media Summit

• WIP Latino - Festival de Cine Internacional de Guadalajara in LA. Awarded with the Marketing Movie Runner. 

• Industry Meetings at DocSP - International Documentary Meeting of Sao Paulo. 

• VI Chile Conecta Encuentro Internacional de Industria Documental

NIKE BOOK 1

Product photos for Nike’s Book 1 new Haven, Hike and Rattlesnake.

I had the pleasure to direct a series of films for PUMA Football, with some of the greatest soccer players around: Marco Reus, Antoine Griezmann, Luis Suárez, Sergio Aguero and Romelu Lukaku. The campaign promoted their new HACKED line of boots and the films highlighted the glitchy texture on the boots, that spreads around the scenes to create crazy effects and weird situations involving each player.

Arely Vazquez's personal story as an immigrant and transgender woman is the starting point of the short movie "La Flaca", that attempts to show what the Santa Muerte (Holy Death) cult is about - a cult formed by those marginalized in our society. The movie blurs the line between documentary and fiction when bringing together real characters and events with a fictional plot, based on the day of the 9th Anniversary of the Santa Muerte. Arely gathers the devotees annually in a celebration through the night, idealized by her as a form of fulfilling her vows to the Skeleton Saint.

"La Flaca" is above all a documentary about the overcoming of prejudices and the breaking of tabus, that also questions social superficial morals. It is a movie about life, but it is also a movie about death - the death that is always just for she'll come to meet us all, sooner or later.

PHOTO ESSAY #1 - NIGERIA

These are a few pictures that I took while doing the research for “Esu and the Universe”.

PHOTO ESSAY #2 - TEPITO, MEXICO

These are a few pictures that I took while doing the research for “La Flaca”, in Tepito, Mexico City.

A ḍākinī (Sanskrit: डाकिनी; Tibetan: མཁའ་འགྲོ་མ་, Wylie: mkha' 'gro ma, THL: khandroma; Mongolian: хандарма; Chinese: 空行母; pinyin: kōngxíngmǔ; lit. 'sky-going mother'; alternatively 荼枳尼, pinyin: túzhǐní; 荼吉尼, pinyin: tújíní; or 吒枳尼, pinyin: zhāzhǐní; Japanese: 荼枳尼 / 吒枳尼 / 荼吉尼, dakini) is a type of female spirit or demon in Hinduism and Buddhism.

The 'ḍākinī' (also wisdom ḍākinī) can refer to both a fierce-looking female embodiments of enlightened energy and to human women with a certain amount of spiritual development.

Natalia lives in São Paulo, Brazil.
Natalia has two jobs.
Natalia is a woman.
Natalia’s orisha is Exu.
Natalia builds mannequins.
Natalia has two names.
Natalia plays videogames.
Natalia's favorite color is red.
Natalia has a dream.
Natalia is not russian but she is a doll.
Natalia is somebody else's dream.
Natalia smokes two packs a day.

MASTERCARD: ANNA+LIU’FAN

3” Mini-doc | Advertising

Mastercard produced a series of videos around the world to promote their League of Legends partnership and Anna was chosen to represent Brazil. This mini-doc features Anna’s inspiring story about how she created Liu’Fan, a character that represents many of her struggles - and also how she overcame them to become a true artist.

PHOTO ESSAY #3 - HIDALGO PENITENTIARY, MEXICO

These are a few pictures that I took while doing the research for “La Flaca”, at the Hidalgo State penitentiary, Mexico.

Every year after the Day of the Dead in November, Enriqueta used to visit several locations to hold a mass for the Santa Muerte (Holy Death) devotees. One of these locations is the Hidalgo State prison. More than half the inmates are devotees and they wait for Enriqueta to bless them and talk about their future and what their life will be like when they come out of prison. Enriqueta passed away a few years ago.

PHOTO ESSAY #4 - REPÚBLICA, SÃO PAULO, BRAZIL

Street photography of República, the neighborhood I lived in São Paulo a few years ago.

República is a central neighborhood in downtown São Paulo, where I lived for about 2 years recently. Once the richest area of São Paulo, now it is known for being a hub of prostitution and drug use - it is also becoming rapidly gentrified, further accentuating the already indisputable inequality that plagues the city, the state and the country. It felt to me like the heart of the city was bloated and throbbing with pain - but still hopeful.

THIAGO ZANATO

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