Manda Bala explores Brazil
INDIE FILM GUIDE: Doc dissects concentration of wealth in societies
By Cindy Spielvogel -- Video Business, 2/22/2008
|
|
Manda Bala is Kohn’s directorial debut. He previously worked with director Errol Morris on The Fog of War, which won the Oscar for Best Documentary in 2004.
Although the audience for documentaries is often limited to people in the white, upper- to middle-class, college- to middle-age demographic, Kohn says he has seen interest in Manda Bala “across the board.”
Although wealthy people don’t like to talk about it, Kohn says, similar situations can occur in other societies—including the U.S. He uses HBO series The Wire, a drama about Baltimore’s drug scene, as an example.
Kohn, who has family roots in Brazil, began making Manda Bala by looking at some “odd industries” in the country. For instance, Brazil has revolutionized frog farming, and the film begins with a scene from a money-laundering frog farm.
Brazil also is the center of technology and progress in plastic surgery, according to Kohn. Surgeries there include taking cartilage from a wealthy patient’s ribs to replace the patient’s ears after being cut off by kidnappers.
The tagline of Manda Bala is “When the rich steal from the poor, the poor steal the rich.”
Kohn knew he was dealing with corruption and crime, but making the film turned out to be unexpectedly dangerous. At one point during an interview, he found himself in a situation where guns were wielded.
But if he had to do it all over again, he would—wouldn’t he?
“No,” Kohn says. “I wouldn’t put the lives of my crew in jeopardy.”Talkback
Related Content
Related Content
There are no other articles related to this article.
