Abstract

Despite the recent explosion of scholarly interest in “star studies,” Brazilian film has received comparatively little attention. As this volume demonstrates, however, the richness of Brazilian stardom extends well beyond the ubiquitous Carmen Miranda. Among the studies assembled here are fascinating explorations of figures such as Eliane Lage (the star attraction of São Paulo’s Vera Cruz studios), cult horror movie auteur Coffin Joe, and Lázaro Ramos, the most visible Afro-Brazilian actor today. At the same time, contributors interrogate the inner workings of the star system in Brazil, from the pioneering efforts of silent-era actresses to the recent advent of the non-professional movie star.

“The volume embraces diverse and nuanced approaches to stardom…; all [contributors] succeed in putting their findings into readable prose. A thorough scholarly apparatus is included. The volume represents a major contribution to star studies.” • Choice

“This is [a] rich text which examines a diverse range of Brazilian stars across different time periods, genres and media platforms. Furthermore, with authors employing a wide range of approaches incorporating race, sexuality, age and gender, this volume collectively adds a new wealth of knowledge to the study of global cinematic stardom, thus far underrepresented in film scholar- ship. The set of images highlighting key performers and performances readers may be unfamiliar with is also a nice touch which adds to the overall appeal of the book.” • Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television

“The strength and originality of this tightly edited volume lie in its historical perspective and comprehensiveness. Each chapter works well on its own, but also forms part of a larger design, and the editors have done an excellent job in mapping the terrain of stardom in Brazil over a century. I know of no other volume, focused on the cinemas of Latin America, that attempts the same chronological range, from early cinema to the present day.” • John King, University of Warwick

Tim Bergfelder is Professor of Film Studies at the University of Southampton. He is one of the editors of the journal Screen, an editorial advisory board member for Transnational Cinemas and Cinema&Cie, and a co-editor of Berghahn’s ‘Film Europa’ series. His publications include Film Architecture and the Transnational Imagination: Set Design in 1930s European Cinema (2007) and Destination London: German-Speaking Émigrés and British Cinema, 1925-1950 (2008).

João Luiz Vieira is Professor of Film and Video at the Federal Fluminense University, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro. He has a doctorate in Cinema Studies from New York University and has held fellowships at the University of New Mexico the University of Iowa. Among his publications are Cinema Novo and Beyond (1998) and Câmera-faca: o cinema de Sérgio Bianchi (2004).

Lisa Shaw is Reader in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies at the University of Liverpool. She is author of The Social History of the Brazilian Samba (1999) and Carmen Miranda (2013). She is currently completing a monograph entitled Tropical Travels: Brazilian Popular Performance, ‘Race’ and Transnational Encounters, 1880s-1950s, for which she was awarded a Leverhulme Trust Senior Research Fellowship.