Synopsis
The night side of a modernist icon. The fauna and flora of Roberto Burle Marx's gardens inhabited by visitors to Parque do Flamengo while the city of Rio de Janeiro falls asleep.
Fireflies
2021 ‘Vagalumes’ Directed by Léo Bittencourt
Cast
Director
Producers
Writers
Editors
Cinematography
Sound
Genre
Releases by Date
Theatrical limited
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France
Releases by Country
France
30 Jan 2021
- Theatrical limited Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival
Popular reviews
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a slow-moving “fabulated ethnography” that conjures & captures a rich atmosphere through its observation of a dark park, charged with energy, silent magic, burning snapshots of light in the night.. an amazing way to characterize a place
✨ slamdance experimental shorts #4 ✨
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O paisagismo modernista de Burle Marx vira só um esboço invertido, quando Léo Bittencourt investe na desapropriação da cultura elitizada, a partir do acesso ao público que o local possui. Os jardins, a flora, a construção arquitetônica do local não possui requintes à noite.
Vira um cenário nômade, de apropriação de terras onde se pode tomar banho, fazer sexo, caminhar e alimentar os gatos sem que a aristocracia e burguesia artística da cidade do Rio de Janeiro desconfie da "transgressão".
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perfect example of gay cruising as artistic subject.
this manufactured depiction of cruising offers a brilliantly complex diversity to the ethnography of a park. it shows the many uses of the park by humans and animals alike, gay cruising being only one use. it is clearly the focus but no judgment is passed and the intimacy is left in. the sound design and night visuals are so so good. kinda amazing methinks.
SLAMDANCE (EXPERIMENTAL SHORTS)
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Beautiful cinematography.
The title makes perfect sense for how the film was shot. Low light, twilight, the glistening bodies of the men shine in the middle of this cruising spot.
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Fireflies will be screened at the 2nd Academy of Death Racers Film Festival from the 6th - 22nd of January 2023. Get your virtual passes now by visiting our website.
[Documentary Short Film Selection]
The night side of a modernist icon. The fauna and flora of Roberto Burle Marx's gardens are inhabited by visitors to Parque do Flamengo while the city of Rio de Janeiro sleeps.
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Intense and meditative, atmospheric and observational. Fireflies is a moody challenge to the documentary form, weaving an anarrative reflection on life after midnight in your local park. It's most impressive for its gorgeous cinematography, with the knowledge that every impeccably framed and beautifully lit shot choice was somehow not composed after months of deliberation but spontaneous. Incredible work, perfect pacing, and a shining example of how emotive and engaging non-narrative fly-on-the-wall documentary can be.
Seen at the Academy of Death Racers Festival 2023! If you want to see more films like this, head on over to www.aodr.net/the-aodr-festival-2023 from January 6-22 for a short film festival which includes five 2023 Oscars shortlisted films!
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o emaranhado da sapopemba que destrói o concreto avisa: o parque é deles, mas a mata é nossa. e aos poucos, de reza em reza, recuperamos o que era nosso. até lá, fazer cinema no Brasil se mantém na alternância entre o soturno e o explícito.
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"Vagalumes (Léo Bittencourt) é a farpa que desponta dos outros filmes da Mostra Panorama 1. Poderíamos dizer que o filme de Leo Bittencourt, diferente de seus colegas de sessão, ao invés de se preocupar com um pós-mundo esgotado, com as raízes da derrocada humana, ou com um vírus invisível que se materializou nas nossas vidas através do universo digital, prefere habitar o Aterro do Flamengo, sua ocupação (e por que não dizer deturpação?) do passeio público de Burle Marx. É um dos filmes que nos faz lembrar da excitante capacidade ressignificativa dos espaços. A ficção não deslancha para mais do que apenas se ater à uma atividade observacional das personagens, mesmo que o filme seja transpassado por cenas um tanto…
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