Renowned Brazilian production company Maria Farinha Filmes announced the development of Sandra Delgado’s fiction feature debut “The Outsider,” executive produced by Cannes best actor winner Wagner Moura. The “Secret Agent” star will also feature in a minor role in the film about the life of Claudia Andujar, the Swiss-born and naturalized Brazilian artist and activist.
“The Outsider” will trace Andujar’s life from surviving the Holocaust to her remarkable work as a photographer whose practice is used as a tool for activism with a focus on human rights and sustainability. Andujar’s work has largely focused on historically marginalized populations in Brazil and has contributed to the demarcation of Indigenous lands and vaccination campaigns in the country’s Amazon region. Her work is part of the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Tate in the UK, as well as having a dedicated gallery at Brazil’s prestigious Inhotim museum.
Delgado, who is behind projects such as Disney’s “Maria: The Outlaw Legend,” is also an established photographer who has dedicated over two decades to studying Andujar. The director is developing “The Outsider” alongside two key consultants: Carlo Zacquini, an Italian Catholic missionary and close friend of Andujar, who partnered with her in campaigns denouncing violence against the Yanomami people in the Amazon; and Ana Maria Machado, a renowned Brazilian anthropologist whose research has been vital in connecting the Indigenous Yanomami culture and language to Delgado’s work. Despite being widely known as a documentarian, Delgado will make “The Outsider” her fiction feature debut.
Speaking on her inspiration for the project, Delgado said that what led her to work on the film was an “affection” for Andujar and “a profound admiration for her work.” “My hope is that this film introduces audiences to the life journey, art, and activism of Claudia Andujar, while offering a critical lens on the devastating consequences of predatory development in Brazil,” she added.
Moura is, of course, one of the great topics of conversation as Awards Season approaches. The winner of this year’s coveted best actor award at Cannes for his striking lead performance in Kleber Mendonça Filho’s “The Secret Agent” — which has recently been selected as Brazil’s entry for the International Feature Oscar — Moura first made waves in the international scene through his portrayal of Pablo Escobar in the hit Netflix series “Narcos.” That role earned him a Golden Globe nomination and boosted a career that came to include parts in major projects such as Alex Garland’s A24 thriller “Civil War” and Apple TV+ series “Dope Thief.”
The actor has long been lauded as one of Brazil’s great stars, having built a successful career on television and cinema, including landmark roles in films such as “Elite Squad” and “Carandiru.” Moura made his directorial debut with 2019’s “Marighella,” about a leader of the armed resistance against Brazil’s Military Dictatorship in the 1970s.
Commenting on the screenplay for “The Outsider,” Moura said it is one “crafted with rare care, the result of decades of research into the trajectory of Claudia Andujar’s life’s work and how her art contributed to the demarcation of Indigenous lands.”
“Cinema that unites a powerful figure with a pressing struggle is the kind of cinema that moves me most deeply,” he continued. “This is an urgent story that is still tragically relevant today. It’s a film I can’t wait to see, and I’m thrilled that Maria Farinha Filmes is joining as a producing partner, committed to the ethical and identity issues at the heart of the project, and dedicated to bringing to the public stories that inspire social and political change.”
Estela Renner, chief creative officer at Maria Farinha Filmes, said the team was “most impressed by how Sandra Delgado’s words echo the transcendent quality of Claudia’s photography, a body of work that reveals new dimensions through its silver particles.”
“Sandra’s writing illuminates a character who seemed too vast to be contained on the page,” she added. “Her storytelling is intrepid, and above all, she writes with daring enchantment for Claudia.”
Maria Farinha Filmes is a leading entertainment company in Latin America with a focus on stories that promote meaningful change. Responsible for more than 50 productions over 17 years, the Brazil-based label is behind projects such as Globo’s “Aruanas” and the documentary franchise “The Beginning of Life,” launched globally on Netflix.
In 2024, Maria Farinha Filmes expanded globally launching MFF & CO, a global entertainment studio based in Los Angeles, as well as acquiring a stake in London-based Violet Films, the four-time Academy Award–nominated production company founded by Oscar-winning filmmaker Joanna Natasegara.