About the film:
The Summer of Gods is a short film (20 minute runtime) about a troubled girl named Lili who unites with her Afro-Brazilian religious ancestry on a summer visit with family to their ancestral village in rural Brazil. Soon after her arrival, she encounters Orishas (African gods) who join with her grandmother to help her find peace with a gift that has previously vexed her. The film is set in the Northeast of Brazil where Afro-Brazilian religious traditions remain strong. Lili’s Grandma is a well revered local priestess who honors the Orishas. Lili is blessed by the goddesses as well. To preserve tradition, they lead her on a mystical adventure through a nearby forest which symbolizes her initiation into the tradition.
About the Filmmaker:
Film director Eliciana Nascimento now holds an MFA (Master of Fine Arts) in Cinema from San Francisco State University. This was her MFA thesis film and her second narrative film.
Eliciana: “My interest in telling this story is to help preserve my ancestors’ traditions. Personal life experience informs its characters and theme as many elements of the film are pulled from my own childhood memories. As a native Brazilian living in a foreign country, I have developed an interest in Pan-African themes. I have noticed that the issues Afro-Brazilians face in Brazil are similar to those faced by African descendants here in the United States and in nations throughout the Americas. As a storyteller and social activist, my motivations around filmmaking are rooted in telling stories of people from the African Diaspora who have often been marginalized by societies and the mainstream film industry. My goal is to use cinema as a tool to reveal the beauty, culture and mythology of these people.”
Where can you watch it?
We are currently submitting the film to festivals throughout the world in hopes that one of them will host our world premiere. After this premiere, we’ll be organizing more screenings. To make sure you’re the first to know, please subscribe to the right, like the film on Facebook, or following the film on Twitter. If you’d like to host a future screening, please email us directly: info@thesummerofgods.com
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