Brazil’s film and television industry is known worldwide for its soap-operas and some classic movies, like 2002’s City of God. Over the years, the country has branched out into another medium that is becoming more accepted and commonplace by the day, as Brazilian TV shows achieve success on platforms such as Netflix, HBO Go and Globo Play.
If you want to delve into the world of “Made in Brazil” TV shows, check out our recommendations of four shows that you need to watch.
We’ll start the list off with the first Brazilian TV show featured on Netflix. Focusing on a post-apocalyptic future in which a small part of society lives a life of luxury while the majority faces extreme poverty, 3% earned good ratings in the United States and other countries.
Here’s the deal: at twenty years of age, each resident from the poor side, called the continent, gets the opportunity to take a test full of challenges. If they succeed in their tasks, they can live on the rich side, called the Maralto. If not, their fate – along with all but 3% of the population – will be lifelong misery.
With a score of 7.4 on the IMDB TV and film reference website, three seasons already released and the fourth and final chapter already confirmed, the show is a great choice to kick off your Brazilian binge-watch.
With an IMDB score of 6.6, the Brazilian TV show Sintonia was not as well-received as 3%. But with a second season scheduled for 2020, it certainly has the potential to improve. The show centres around three young people who live in the slums of São Paulo, and take different paths under different influences: music, religion and drug-dealing respectively.
The cool thing about Sintonia is that its director, KondZilla, achieved fame, prestige and international success as a director and producer of Brazilian funk music videos. Through the lens of music and Brazilian urban culture, his self-belief and talent have resulted in his own original show on Netflix, the largest streaming platform in the world.
Born in Guarujá, a seaside city in the state of São Paulo, he has the most subscribed YouTube channel in Latin America and the second largest music channel in the world, with more than 50 million subscribers and 250 billion views. The back-story of the entrepreneur, whose real name is Konrad Dantas, is reason enough to give this show a try.
Healthcare-focused TV shows have long been a hit in the United States, with the classic House, the long-lasting Gray’s Anatomy and the more recent success of The Good Doctor springing to mind. In Brazil it’s no different, and Under Pressure deserves your attention.
With three seasons already released and the fourth green-lit, this show by TV Globo, the largest TV network in the country, focuses on two healthcare professionals with opposite personalities who work as surgeons in a public hospital in the suburbs of Rio de Janeiro. The protagonists grow closer despite their differences, amid the pressure and challenges of their daily routine.
With an IMDB score of 8.6, the show has been picked up by networks from Portugal, Ecuador and Argentina, and screened at festivals in Berlin and Toronto. You can watch the series on GloboPlay, the network’s streaming platform.
HBO, one of the biggest film and TV producers and networks in the world, was never going to miss out on this list. In The Business, three high-class call girls use marketing strategies to increase their earnings, gain market space and start a company.
The series aired from 2013 to 2018, coming to an end after four seasons and with an 8.1 rating on IMDB. It was shown on HBO’s channels in Latin America and Portugal, and is available on HBO Go, the network’s streaming platform.
Choose a Brazilian TV show from the four we recommend above to begin exploring the country’s vast catalogue of film and television productions. Take a look at our brazilian documentaries recommendations too, and stay tuned on the Sherlock Communications blog for more cultural tips!
