Rio Gringa

Who Are The Humans of Brazil?

Humans of New York has become a global phenomenon, with more than 12 million fans on Facebook, multiple book deals, and a partnership with the UN. Street photographer Brandon Stanton, the project's creator, inspired "Humans" pages around the world, from Paris to Tehran to Bangalore.

In Brazil, there are four major Humans spin-offs in Rio, São Paulo, Curitiba, and Recife, with several other smaller pages in those cities. I was curious to find out who's behind the Brazilian Humans projects, so I exchanged emails with the creators and team members of these pages.

Humans of São Paulo

See the page on Facebook
Followers: 37,000
Languages: Portuguese and English
Team Member: Luisa Moraleida

 

I am 19 years old and I study journalism and performing arts. I am also a part-time English teacher and photographer, but I work as a freelancer. 

 

I run the page with a friend named Bruna Fernandes, 18. She first created the page in mid-June last year and I joined a few months later. We met on the Internet and the page wasn't that popular back then, but we started to gain a lot of supporters all around the world and the media got interested which was very helpful to spread the word.

 

"'If you could give an advice for a large group of people, what would it be?' 'Do not stand still on the left side of the escalator.'"

 

 Personally I have always been a very curious and caring person. I would always naturally talk to strangers anywhere I'd go. I remember being a kid sitting in the passenger seat next to my mom and watching all the people walking on the streets and riding the bus and just going on with their lives and I'd get so frustrated because I wanted to know where every single one of them was coming from, where they were going and how they were feeling. My friends thought I was weird because I would ask personal questions to the lunch lady or the doorman. So that need to know a little bit more was always there in me.

 

Then I discovered Humans of New York in 2011 and I became a huge fan. I wanted to create a similar page but I never had the courage. And then I met Bruna through Facebook and we met in person for the first time at a park where I took pictures of strangers with incredibly interesting lives. And that's how it went.

 

I have a few favorite stories but the one I will never forget is about a lady that has one of the warmest hearts I've ever known. And she was the one that first engaged a conversation with me.

 

"Everything was set for us to get married. We had been dating for 5 years, and the ceremony was going to happen in September. In June, he told me there was only a month left of his marriage with another woman. I only got out of this one having a lot of faith in God. I suffered a lot, spent years not dating anyone until I met my daughter's father. I lived with him for 10 years, until I got pregnant. She was born 'special.' Her father left me." Read the rest of the story here.

 

*****

 

Humanos de Recife
See the page on Facebook
Followers: 13,000
Languages: Portuguese
Team Member: Carolina Magalhães

 

There's three of us on the team: Caio Queiroz, 20, a photographer and art director at HDRec; Carina Pereira, 19, a unversity student and creative director; and me, Carolina Magalhães, 19. I work in radio and TV production.

 

Caio deals most with the photography part, but the work of finding stories and transcribing them and updating the fanpage and keeping it active is a collective effort. We also have an Instagram.

Everyone who gets involved with the "Humans of" brand is a fan of the HONY phenomenon and it was the same for us. We were at my house, and Carina had shown me the original version of what would become our future project. We thought, "We could make a Recife version."

 

"When I was little and my mom died giving birth to my brother, we went to live with my dad. In this old house there was a door stop; one day my father came and told me to lie down with my head there; he wanted to kill me by hitting my head. But my sister came just in time and didn't let him. Nobody believes in me."

 

Plus, people in Recife love to talk, you know? (Even tourists who come here notice this, and it's really true.) For example, I'm at the bus stop with another woman and by the time the bus gets there, I already know the woman has three kids, is late to get an x-ray, has stuff to do at home and is so excited to see her granddaughter next weekend. People from Recife have this thing of loving to talk, to be friendly and involved.

 

The goal of Humanos de Recife - along with finding and showing stories - is exactly to try to remind people of this, to make sure they know more about their own city while seeing the city in a different way. Another thing that we wanted is to make it 100% ours, so when we chose the name, we decided to leave it in Portuguese and make it closest to how we talk.

I think the coolest thing we found was a guy who discovered at age 18 that he was adopted - in the most unique way possible.

 
"I was in the army barracks when I saw a person who looked a lot like me. Curious, I went to speak to him and he looked like a copy of me. When I went home, I told me mom I'd seen someone identical to me, and she turned to me and said: 'It's your brother.'" Read the rest of the story here.

*****

Humans of Rio de Janeiro
See the page on Facebook
Followers: 44,000
Languages: English and Portuguese
Creator: Eiran Kreimer

I'm 43 and I work in real estate which doesn't have anything to do with photography. There are two other people who run the page: Dominique Valansi, a journalist who specializes in photography and Fabio Minduim, a professional photographer.

When the New York page had a little over 30,000 followers, I decided to create a Carioca version in May 2012. Though it's based on the New York page, it tries to do something different with its own personality. Rio has unique local characters which should be seen in a different way than they're usually shown.

"Where is the cable car that used to pass by here?"

We've already published more than 1,500 photos and 80 videos. Sometimes a photo is marvelous and beautiful, and other photos are simpler and have a story with an impact. Some people who live outside the country prefer certain photos, while people who live here identify with other photos.

"They call me 'Di Chicken.' I live close to Central Station, and I pay R$650 in rent. In 2008, I ended up in a shelter, and since I never wanted to do anything wrong, they gave me that nickname. I'm a little late, I'm supposed to go gather cans with someone. That's my job, but I can walk with my head held high."

Humans of Curitiba
See the page on Facebook
Followers: 27,000
Languages: Portuguese
Creator: Gustavo Jordaky

I'm 28 and a photographer. I studied web design and worked with electronics distribution until I decided to bet on, dedicate myself to, and deepen my knowledge of photography.

"Sir, will you take my picture too?"

As an amateur photographer, I went to downtown Curitiba and took a photo of a homeless man. I showed him the picture and he invited me to sit down and talk. He told me the story of how he ended up on the streets. This was my first contact with this type of photography. The same day, a friend showed me Brandon Stanton's Humans of New York project and I fell in love with the idea. So the next morning, Humans of Curitiba was born.

"I always enjoy biking. But what I really like is biking in this cool weather."

I decided to create something in my city when I saw that good messages could come out of stories of "strangers" and a different way of looking at how people see those around them, the people who share their space and society.

Rio's Renaissance: Will Public Works Last?

During my recent trip to Rio, someone told me that Rio is experiencing its "golden age" because of the upcoming mega-events and the growing investments the city is attracting. So given this fact, what would be the best legacies to result from this presumed renaissance? A functional public transportation system? Improved public schools? State-of-the-art hospitals? A modern sewage system? Maybe. But one thing that will definitely come out of this period are grandiose public works, ones that certainly contribute to the city but ones that also need to be maintained after the Olympics or risk becoming white elephants. That's really one of the big questions: if everything being built and accomplished in this window of time can survive until 2017.

I'd like to give two examples of these public works, which I had the chance to visit this month, and a third example of a cautionary tale.

The Rio Museum of Art (MAR) is an amazing new institution, which opened to the public in March. It's made up of two connected buildings: an uber-modern one with a sleek design, and another that resembles the early 20th century architecture that you find in downtown Rio.

The museum not only has a great collection of modern art, but it has entire sections that showcase Rio. It's like a trophy case for the city, and a wonderful way for people to celebrate Rio, its history, and its culture in a meaningful way. It's not that Rio doesn't already have good museums, but often they are places seen as places for, and sometimes with works catered to the elite. It was heartening to see not only that the museum was packed, but that there were Cariocas from across the socioeconomic spectrum. 

And at MAR, it's not what you usually find at Rio's museums, like paintings from the 18th century. There are lots of works focusing on favelas, as well as Rio social movements. For example, there's an amazing installation of a favela made out of cinder blocks, wire, beer cans, and other recycled materials (see below). But even those classic paintings are wonderful, showing the city in its colonial days.

Another plus: tou can go all the way to the roof and see a view of the bay. MAR is part of Rio's massive port revitalization project, and there are several screens that have an interactive view of what the area will look like when all the construction is done, with videos showing the simulated buildings and infrastructure. (The Museum of Tomorrow, for example, will be built on the spit of land you can see in the photo below). Looking at the simulations, you can't help but hope that not only will they actually come to fruition, but that they'll also last.

Next is another public work on the other side of town. Parque Madureira, a huge, beautiful park surrounded by favelas and blue-collar neighborhoods, is a perfect example of creating public space where it's needed. (It's also a smart political move, but anyway.) The park opened last June, and now not only attracts Cariocas but also performances from singers like Daniela Mercury and a visit by skater Tony Hawk.

There's a stage with a large plaza for concerts and shows, numerous areas for different sports ranging from volleyball to ping pong, a bike path, koi ponds, a playground, a fountain for kids to play in, gym equipment, several cafés, and a skate park that Hawk called one of the best in the world. It's also very green, both literally and figuratively, with different elements made from recycled materials, some solar panels, and plants sprouting from building facades. There's also a visible police presence, including both municipal guards (who can't carry guns) and military police.

One of the coolest parts of the park is the "nave de conhecimento," or knowledge ship. It's one of several located throughout the city that give locals free internet access. There are iPads for kids, an upstairs with laptops for events and classes, and evidently, a Wifi signal that people use by sitting outside. There are also several large touch screens that allow people to search maps, look up information, and make suggestions to local government about their communities.

The government wants to expand the park even more. But walking through and seeing everything looking new, it made me concerned about what will happen once Paes is out of office, let alone 2017.

And then we come to Engenhão.

This photo was taken in 2007 during the Pan-American Games, when the stadium was brand-new. Now, with less than 2 months to go before the Confederations Cup and about a year away from the World Cup, Engenhão is closed indefinitely. That's because the six-year-old stadium is essentially falling apart. The city found that the stadium--which cost $190 million to build--had structural problems, particularly with the roof. That mega-event, Brazil-based journalist Andrew Downie points out, was over budget with promised infrastructure projects that never happened, and venues that aren't being used or now have to undergo costly renovations. "It is nothing short of scandalous that the organizers are being given a second chance," he wrote.

Will 2017 be different? We have to hope so.

Character Approved

Sadly, Waste Land didn't win the Oscar for best documentary, but the nomination helped give the film and its stars even more publicity, and to get out the word about the catadores and Vik's work.

Vik will be honored at USA's Character Approved Awards, which will be broadcast on March 8th at 11PM. Vik was chosen as the Artist of the Year, one of twelve people "changing the face of American culture." Here's one of the videos from USA below. There's another video available on the USA site but you can't embed it, so click here to watch it.

Don't miss it!

Waste Land Movie US Release

Great news! Waste Land, the documentary about Vik Muniz, is getting an official US release! Thanks to Arthouse Films for providing the dates, so look for your city below. The film opens in New York this week, and will be rolled out across the country through February 2011.

The movie was recently featured in a great New York Times article, along with a little bio about Vik. It was also covered in the Brazilian press, since the movie was shown at the Mostra de SP this past weekend. The film is slated for an early 2011 release in Brazil. Read more about the movie here and here.

I cannot stress enough how incredible this movie is. I saw it twice in theaters and told everyone I know to see it, so please go check it out! It is honestly one of the most wonderful, inspiring movies you will ever see.

 

US Screenings - Waste Land

Angelika - NEW YORK 29-Oct 
Landmark Nuart - LOS ANGELES 5-Nov 
Landmark Varsity - SEATTLE 12-Nov 
Landmark Lagoon - MINNEAPOLIS 12-Nov 
CCA Santa Fe 12-Nov 
Landmark Kendall Square - BOSTON 19-Nov 
Landmark Lumiere - San Francisco 19-Nov 
Landmark Shattuck - Berkeley 19-Nov 
Landmark Midtown Art - ATLANTA 19-Nov 
Landmark Denver Denver 19-Nov 
Landmark San Diego San Diego 26-Nov 
Landmark E-Street - DC 3-Dec 
Landmark Ritz Bourse Philadelphia 3-Dec 
Charles Theater - Baltimore 3-Dec 
Lakewood Ranch - Sarasota 12/4 & 12/5 
Landmark St. Louis St Louis 10-Dec 
Living Room Theaters - Portland 10-Dec 
Living Room Theaters - Boca Raton 17-Dec 
Music Box Theater - Chicago 1/7/10   
Wexner Center for the Arts  - Columbus OH 2/4 and 2/5

Vik Muniz at TED

Vik Muniz is all over the place these days, and I recently discovered that he spoke at TED a few years ago. For those of you who haven't had the chance to see the spectacular documentary about Vik Muniz's work, Waste Land, here's a great video that provides a short overview of Vik's career and creative inspiration, as well as a bit of background on how he got started. 

It's available in English, but you can also watch it with Portuguese subtitles here. It shows some of Vik's earlier work, as well as charting the different mediums he's worked with throughout his career. It also shows Vik's clever sense of humor and some of very funny sculptures I'd never seen before.

And great news! Waste Land is now playing at the IFC Center in NYC from August 13th to August 19th, with screenings in several other US locations this month. Don't miss it!

More info

Vik Muniz's website

Waste Land Website

TED Profile

MoMa Film Festival

With more time and money, I would have gone to every movie at the MoMA Premiere Brazil Film Festival this year, but unfortunately, I only made it to a few. The first movie I saw was a big disappointment, as was the most recent one I saw. Fortunately, one of the films was so good that it made up for the other two.

The not so thrilling movie was Terras, a documentary about the border region of the Amazon. I could not disagree more with the Huffington Post review:

"Terra sets the stage for the contrasts of social cohabitation that occur between the indigenous Indians, transient locals and governments. The director uses the camera to seduce the viewer with gorgeous portraits of the people that migrate throughout this ambiguous territory, as well as the kaleidoscope of colors and textures that comprise the land itself."

If by seduce, you mean put to sleep, then yes, that just about covers it. While this movie had potential to be really interesting - there were some good interviews with various locals who discussed identity, the Amazon, and the concept of borders - there was absolutely no context or information given about anything or anyone, and an absurd amount of time was spent on close ups of random textures in the forest or uninteresting scenes that went on far too long. This film would be more appropriate as an exhibit at MoMa, one you pass through to look at for a few minutes, but not as a full length feature. Several people left during the movie, including our friends who came with us, and Eli squirmed until the anti-climatic end of the film.

But meanwhile, Lixo Extraordinario (translated in English as Wasteland, though it literally means "Extraordinary Trash"), was by far one of the best documentaries I've ever seen.

First of all, I love Vik Muniz. I saw his exhibit in the film when it first opened in Rio, and went twice I loved it so much. But I didn't realize the extent of the story behind the trash series, and this movie blew me away.

The film follows Vik from the beginning to the end of his trash project, where he goes to one of the biggest landfills in the world to collect trash to use for a new series. But instead of staying in the comfort of his beautiful Brooklyn apartment, he ventures to Rio (he is paulista, by the way), and spends time in easily one of the most godforsaken places in Brazil. He hires the garbage pickers at the dump site to collect pieces for his project, who normally collect materials they can recycle. He also hires them to pose for photographs and arrange the trash on projections of the photographs to create amazing works of art. He promises them all of the proceeds from the sales of the pieces so that the money will go back to the community.

While the movie is about art, sustainability, the environment, and poverty, its least obvious theme is classism. Though there are allusions to it, the movie doesn't fully explain just how low on the rung these catadores are; to compare them to the Indian caste system, in Brazil, they're the untouchables. Vik, meanwhile, is very wealthy and from a very different world, though he grew up poor. He purposefully designs a project with social ramifications intended to help those who have very little. (Be prepared: the scenes of poverty are jarring). There's a scene where Vik argues with his wife about the long term effects the project will have on the catadores; she argues he's doing them harm, by giving them a spot in the limelight when they will just have to go back to picking trash. His attitude is different - "If I were in their shoes, I would do the same thing." In the end, there are no illusions that the project couldn't completely change everyone's lives, since it's just not possible. But the experience undoubtedly had a positive, empowering effect on everyone involved. It's also important to note that this scenario is not necessarily the norm for Brazil. While philanthropy is definitely growing, this type of project where the benefactor literally worked side by side with the beneficiaries, so to speak, is not typical for wealthy expat Brazilians, and it was extremely inspiring to see.

The other key facet of the film that makes it such a joy to watch are the catadores themselves, who are each charming in their own way. Tião, the head of the pickers' collective, is the obvious star, but every single person brought something different and compelling to the project (I especially loved Magna). Valter, one of the old-timers, will forever change the way you think about recycling (and really, doing anything to help others) with his simple words of wisdom. "Noventa e nove não é cem," he says, matter-of-factly.

I can pretty much guarantee you'll weep and re-evaluate your life by the end of this movie. Go see it!

For upcoming screenings near you, check the official site. If you're in New York, there will be a screening on August 14th at the Museo del Barrio.

The Lapa Steps: Bringing Color to Rio

Awhile back, I got a marketing e-mail from someone at the Let's Colour project, but since it was something of a form e-mail with a brief mention about Rio de Janeiro, I sort of glazed over it, also in part because I have been really busy and overwhelmed. This was unfortunate because later on, I found out more about the project and found some fun videos on YouTube (via The Good Blood). The lesson is that personalized emails with direct links to multimedia and explicit explanations about why bloggers should care about a project are much more effective than copying and pasting some generic text.

In any event, this is a bit late, but please check out The Colour Project in Rio de Janeiro, with the wonderful, eccentric, charming, Portunhol-speaking Selaron and his fellow Lapa artist, Mimi.