Elena

Elena

Directed by Petra Costa
Based on a true story, ELENA obliterates the line between documentary, diary and fever dream.

Overview

Genre
Personal Doc, Docu-Drama, and Biography
Synopsis

Elena, a young Brazilian woman, moves to New York with the same dream as her mother: to become a movie actress. She leaves behind her childhood spent in hiding during the years of the military dictatorship. She also leaves Petra, her seven-year-old sister. Two decades later, Petra also becomes an actress and heads to New York. At first in search of her destiny, but increasingly, in search of Elena, Petra has only a few clues: home movies, newspaper clippings, a diary and some letters.

Gradually, the features of the two sisters are confused; we no longer know one from the other. When Petra finally finds Elena in an unexpected place, she has to learn to let her go. ELENA is a film about the persistence of those memories, the irreversibility of that loss, and the impact the absence of her sister had on the seven-year-old girl.

Stage
finished
Running time
82 minutes

Credits

  • Tiago Pavan ... Associate Producer
  • Petra Costa ... Director

Production Details

Prod. Co.
Busca Vida Filmes
Country
Brazil

Distribution Details

Release year
2014
Awards
Films de Femmes 2013 - Best Feature Documentary // 35th Havana International Film Festival - Best Feature Documentary // 45th Brasília Festival of Brazilian Cinema - Best Direction, Best Film Editing, Best Art Direction, Audience Award
Distribution
Syndicado, Variance Films
Language
Portuguese, English
Subtitles
Portuguese, English, Spanish, French

Photos

Fb88aeba70481c450aa1660563d0bb2b

Browse documentary films on The D-Word