Embrafilme's logo
Empresa Brasileira de Filmes S.A., better known as Embrafilme, was a Brazilian state-owned mixed economy company that produced and distributed films. It was the company that distributed the 1984 Brazilian parody film Os Trapalhões e o Mágico de Oróz.
History[]
The history of Embrafilme has its roots in 1937, during the government of Getúlio Vargas, with the creation of the INCE (Instituto Nacional de Cinema Educativo). This institute was established as a political means to promote access to culture, while also allowing the censorship of content considered contrary to political interests. In 1966, INCE was replaced by INC (Instituto Nacional de Cinema), with the aim of managing the entire cinema production chain, contrasting with its predecessor which was more of a political tool with an emphasis on education.
On September 12, 1969, the INC received a complement through Brazilian Decree-Law No. 862, which gave rise to Embrafilme as Empresa Brasileira de Filmes Sociedade Anônima and linked to the then Ministério da Educação e Cultura. This was the first direct State intervention in the country's film production, as until then the INC acted mainly as a regulator, legislator and film financier.
Embrafilme's main objective was to establish a film industry in Brazil independent of foreigners. This objective was established at the beginning of the 1970s and, at this time, Embrafilme was at its peak. The Brazilian film market is growing in a way never seen before and occupies a large space.
In 1974, the INC was dissolved and it was created the Conselho Nacional de Cinema (Concine) and the Fundação Centro Modelo de Cinema (Centrocine). In this way, Embrafilme's responsibilities were amplified, becoming production, co-production, distribution, exhibition, film promotion, industry financing, film import, documentation, professional training, creation of subsidiaries, among others.
In the 1980s, Brazil faced a complicated economic crisis due to the increase in external debt, resulting in the so-called "década perdida". This affected Embrafilme, which went through a moral crisis. After the end of the Brazilian Military Dictatorship, Embrafilme, created to promote national cinema abroad during that period, was increasingly questioned due to its connections with a dark period in Brazilian history and for being a state-owned company linked to an undemocratic regime.
Despite offering co-production opportunities, filmmakers needed to follow certain conditions to avoid censorship of their films. Furthermore, there was a lack of diversity in the selection of filmmakers, with a political assessment that excluded those considered subversive to the regime. This generated harsh criticism of Embrafilme from the film community.
Independent producers criticized the company for the threat to their competitiveness in the market, while exhibitors questioned the obligation to show national short films before foreign films. With political openness, it was inevitable that the press and film professionals would express these criticisms.
Within Embrafilme itself, there were administration difficulties. Filmmaker Roberto Farias played a crucial role in the company's growth and improving dialogue with the film community while serving as general director, however, he left the position, even though he expressed a desire to continue. His replacement, Celso Amorim, a diplomat with no experience in cinema, increased the crisis in the relationship with the cinematographic community. He directed the film "Pra Frente, Brasil", a work that criticized the military regime, which caused discomfort among the military authorities, since a former employee, with support from Embrafilme itself, financed a film that questioned the regime in which he himself had worked. Celso Amorim's resignation from the state-owned company further aggravated Embrafilme's crisis.
From 1990 onwards, President Fernando Collor de Mello closed Embrafilme's activities. His neoliberal policy eliminated state support for cinema and other cultural bodies, including extinguishing the Ministério da Cultura, turning it into Secretaria da Cultura. This free market approach, associated with globalization, resulted in the loss of space in national cinema for North American productions.
Research indicates that, until the end of the 1980s, Brazil still produced a considerable number of films, despite the economic crisis. However, attendance and the number of movie theaters have declined year after year, in part due to rising ticket prices, which made it difficult for the population, especially the more popular classes, to access movie theaters.
One could argue that if Brazil had maintained a policy of supporting national cinema and its production, the public interested in Brazilian films would be much larger than it is currently. However, with the end of Embrafilme, which many researchers consider to have been inevitable, the public ended up losing the habit of watching national films. After the disappearance of Embrafilme and any incentive legislation, Brazil started to produce an insignificant number of films; only one film that achieved any relevance was made in 1992, directed by Walter Salles, entitled "A Grande Arte".
Brazil only began to recover in the film market years later, with the return of incentive laws and, especially, from 2001 onwards, with the establishment of the Agência Nacional do Cinema (ANCINE), responsible for regulating the audiovisual market.