Multimedia Artist Edgar Directs the Short Film "CAT HERB"

The singer and multi-artist Novíssimo Edgar signs the direction and script of the short film "Erva de Gato", a project produced by the artist Giulia Del Bel (My name is Bagdá), who is also part of the cast, along with Grace Passô (Praça Paris) and Ítalo Martins (Cidade Invisível). The co-direction is by Sabrina Duarte and the soundtrack is by the producer and drummer Pupillo (ex-Nação Zumbi).

The film is a work of fiction set in a Brazil divided into three borders, after a civil war: "Democratic Confederalism of the Northeast", "South is my Country" and "Amazon (The Resort)". A group of friends (Grace Passô, Ítalo Martins, and Edgar) meet in a house in the "Autonomous State", where the last base of the SUS (the last public health system in the world) is located, where the character Clarice Sabino de Jesus (Giulia Del Bel) resists, one of the last workers of the institution, who carries the surname of Brazilian scientists who decoded the genome of the coronavirus.

In a glass game, a sleeping spirit awakens in the body of Gato, who receives a mission: to go back 500 years in time and hide the American continent from the colonizers. The film, which is still in the filming phase, is expected to be released in the second semester of 2021.

"The idea behind the film is to bring a sense of lack and anguish, on a visit to an unassisted Brazil, where there are isolated and personal attempts for a better political context. The Unified Health System is an oracle and one of humanity's greatest assets, serving as an example for other health and citizenship projects, even though Brazilians are aware of all the difficulties and queues to get care; it's better to have a UBS in the neighborhood than five private care offices," observes Edgar.

The film received support from Converse, creator of the famous Chuck Taylor All Star model. The brand, already a partner of Novíssimo Edgar, provided products for the production and also included two members of its creative community, the Converse All Stars, Giulia Del Bel and Luciana Barreto.

"Erva de Gato"

Short film - in the filming phase.

Direction: Novíssimo Edgar and Sabrina Duarte

Cast: Grace Passô, Ítalo Martins, Giulia Del Bel, Taciana Bastos, and Luciana Barreto

Production and Executive Production: Giulia Del Bel

Soundtrack: Pupillo (Ex- Nação Zumbi)

Making Of and Still: Luciana Barreto

Production Director: Camila Abade

Art Director: Camila Rhodes

Assistant Director: Priscila Lima

Official website: Erva do Gato

Teaser: Erva De Gato Trailer

Support: Converse

Synopsis:

After a civil war that separated Brazil into three borders: "Democratic Confederalism of the Northeast", "South is my Country", and "Amazon (The Resort)".

A group of friends meets in a house in the "Autonomous State", where the last base of the SUS (the last public health system in the world) is located. In a glass game, a sleeping spirit awakens in the body of Gato, who receives a mission: to return 500 years in time and hide the American continent from the colonizers.

Edgar - testimony

The idea behind the film is to bring a sense of lack and anguish, on a visit to an unassisted Brazil, where there are isolated and personal attempts for a better political context. The Unified Health System is an oracle and one of humanity's greatest assets, serving as an example for other health and citizenship projects, even though Brazilians are aware of all the difficulties and queues to get care; it's better to have a UBS in the neighborhood than five private care offices.

With this proposal that Brazil has divided into three and the SUS is supposedly maintained by the UN, I want to bring up the issue that our culture needs to be imported to be valued again here. May this fear of losing the SUS while watching the film serve as motivation to defend the health agents who have been giving their lives in the fight against the coronavirus, dengue, and victims of police abuse and the capitalist state.

The inspiration is once again reality, the pandemic moment we are living. During quarantine, the phrase "reinventing oneself" was so overused that it became saturated, and no one was able to define any of these reinventions. My proposal was to revitalize some old, paused, or incomplete ideas that the fast-paced time we lived in never allowed me to finalize. This story has existed since 2016; during quarantine, I dived back into it and began to refine and update some proposals of the argument, thanks to Giulia Del Bel, the story is coming to life and gaining strength.

The process is always more enjoyable than the result; we end up researching and learning a lot about the stories we want to tell. The character Clarice Sabino de Jesus, who works in the SUS, carries the surname of the Brazilian scientists who decoded the genome of the coronavirus.

The obstacles remain the same, even more so with this dismantling of culture and education. I am an artist with many ideas and little money; currently, we are raising funds to complete the film; we are trying for support and sponsors. The issue is that the story we are telling does not fit into any holiday created by capitalism, where we could strategically be mass maneuvered for some kind of pink money or black money marketing, however, as the month of Black consciousness for some is only in November, we are going to our way trying to tell our stories, whether fiction or documentary, this time, we will be the ones to tell.

TEAM

Edgar - Director and screenwriter

Edgar is a multifaceted artist who translates the new era that transcends standards. His album "Ultrassom", officially released in 2018 by Deckdisc, produced by Pupillo, achieved great public and critical acclaim upon release. With the song "Exú as Escolas", Edgar has a notable participation in the latest album of Elza Soares, and in the newest and seasoned album of BaianaSystem, in the track "Sonar" alongside Curumim. In the same year of the release of his album, he was nominated for Best New Artist by the awards: Multishow Award and APCA - São Paulo Association of Art Critics. He won the Best RAP Album award at the 2018 Cata-Vento Trophy by Rádio Cultural Brasil and was the only Brazilian artist to perform at the MaMA 2018 Festival in Paris (France).

Sabrina Duarte - Director

With experience in advertising films and music videos, the professional has recent clients such as: ELLE, NIKE, OLYMPIKUS, DISNEY CHANNEL, BOTICÁRIO, SAMSUNG, NATURA, NETFLIX, C&A, VOGUE BRASIL, SPOTIFY, LINIKER E OS CARAMELOWS, LINN DA QUEBRADA, and others.

Giulia Del Bel - Producer and Executive Producer

Actress, Director, and Cultural Producer, she started her audiovisual career in 2015 in a VR content production company and activations at events and festivals, holding various positions from production, full service, and project management, participating in the productions of RAY BAN, SHEWPPES, STONE, SOUZA CRUZ (LOLLAPALOOZA and RIO 2016), and others. As a member of the all-female skate collective Britneys Crew, she produced events involving skate and street culture, discussion circles, and curation of short films. In cinema, in addition to being an actress, she made STILL material and social media planning for the award-winning feature MEU NOME É BAGDÁ, winner of the Grand Prix at Berlinale 2020, among others; in music videos with artists: THERA BLUE, GABI DA PELE PRETA, NEGO BALA MC, DUDA BEAT, and MC SOFFIA.

Camila Abade - Production Direction

Production director, cultural and artistic producer, and assistant director. For 13 years, she has been working on the production of works in various segments. A frequenter of black and urban culture movements. She directs the production of feature films and documentaries. Volunteered at SBT on the Teleton program. Managed the production of 7 series broadcast on Netflix, Amazon, and Discovery channels. Participated in productions for brands such as Red Bull, Avon, Natura, Faber Castell, Burger King, Nestlé, Duracell, and Honda, and programs for Sony, Globonews, Canal Brasil, GNT, Canal E!, and SescTV. Music videos for singers IZA, Gloria Groove, and Lexa. Production teacher in the residency "Mulheres Negras Projeto de Mundo" a project by Itaú for black and peripheral youth.

Camila Rhodes - Art Director

Camila Rhodes, from Guarulhos, 31 years old, a multifaceted artist (transits between photography, audiovisual, and visual arts) graduated in Arts and post-graduated in Cinema, video and photography. Worked for ten years as an art educator and today, her main language is photography and art direction, work she has been developing since 2008, forming partnerships with various artists; from her interpretations and ways of seeing the world, she approaches in her creations a bit of herself, using photography and artistic construction to propose studies of visual narratives about the moment as a form of timeless and playful manifesto. She is active in the Guarulhos Photographers Collective, coordinates educational projects, and develops work in the field of Communication, such as CD covers, artist promos, magazine publications, comic stories, institutional videos, clips, among others.

Pupillo - Soundtrack

Pupillo is a drummer, soundtrack composer, and music producer from Brazil. He is a former member of the band Nação Zumbi. Together with Marcelo Soares and Caca Barreto, he founded the Candeeiro Records label in 1999. In 2016, he won the Latin Grammy for best recording engineering with the album "Tropix" by singer CÉU and in 2020 the Latin Grammy for best contemporary pop album with the album APKÁ by singer CÉU.