Toronto: Brazilian Pic ‘I’m Still Here’ Pops at Fest, Could Strongly Contend for International Feature Oscar

With the doable exception of the animated function The Wild Robotic, no movie that has had its world premiere or North American premiere at the 2024 Toronto International Movie Pageant has been extra warmly obtained than I’m Still Right here, Walter Salles’ deeply transferring portrait of 1 household’s expertise beneath the army dictatorship that dominated Brazil from 1964 by way of 1985.

After being unveiled final week at the Venice Movie Pageant, the place the jury awarded it the very best screenplay prize, the movie debuted in Toronto at the TIFF Lightbox on Monday afternoon, the place — within the presence of Salles and stars Fernanda Torres and Selton Mello — it was greeted with an enthusiastic minute-long standing ovation. (Not like Cannes and Venice, Toronto is just not a fest the place standing ovations of any size are a given).

I’m Still Right here was tailored from Marcelo Rubens Paiva’s 2015 guide Ainda Estou Aqui by Murilo Hauser and Heitor Lorega, and facilities on the Paiva household, with whom Salles himself grew up. Torres, in a restrained however highly effective flip, performs the matriarch of a clan with 5 children, each earlier than and after their gregarious patriarch, former Brazilian Labour Get together congressman Rubens Paiva, out of the blue disappears.

The “disappeared” — perceived enemies of the state who’re taken from their households — have been the main target of different robust movies that made a dent come awards season, notably two targeted on Argentina: finest worldwide function Oscar winner The Official Story (1985) and nominee Argentina, 1985 (2022).

I’m Still Right here does a comparably highly effective job of addressing their story, and, with the enthusiastic backing of U.S. distributor Sony Classics, stands a really robust shot at touchdown a nom for the very best worldwide function Oscar (alongside one other TIFF ’24 fan favourite, France’s doubtless entry Emilia Pérez).

The final time that Brazil landed a finest worldwide function Oscar nom was 26 years in the past, for Salles’ breakthrough movie, Central Station, and the movie’s star, Fernanda Montenegro, additionally landed a finest actress nom. Torres, who’s Montenegro’s daughter, might actually observe in her footsteps. (Montenegro, now 94, performs the older model of Torres in a cameo in I’m Still Right here.) And Hauser and Lorega’s script shouldn’t be counted out of the very best tailored screenplay contest, both.