Jengafilm is about to land in Brasil. The Brazilian TV series “Sapore d'Italia”, which Jengafilm has co-produced, is to be launched by RBS TV, the main TV network in the Rio Grande do Sul region, in southern Brazil.

 

The first of the six episodes of the mini-series will be aired on 6th August by RBS TV, which is affiliated to Tele-Globo, has its headquarters in Porto Alegre, and reaches 22 million people in the country.

 

Sapore d'Italia is the first international production of RBS TV. It has been directed by Boca Migotto and Rafael Ferretti (both of Italian origin), and produced by Mariana Müller of Brazilian production house Epifania Filmes.

 

The TV series, which is part of RBS TV's winter fiction programming, has an important meaning for Jengafilm, because by co-producing the series, Jengafilm becomes a protagonist in the increasingly strong relationship between Brasil and Italy.

 

Four episodes out of five of Sapore d'Italia are set in Jengafilm's place of origin, Veneto in northern Italy, and tell the comical adventures of two Brazilians who travel back to Italy to re-discover the lands of their great-grandfathers.

 

The production of Sapore d'Italia, and in particular the contribution of Jengafilm, is a demonstration of how history repeats itself in reality, and is transformed by fiction. After Italy, and particularly the Veneto region, contributed massively to immigration in Brazil between the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth, now an equally massive number of Italian businesses are participating in the solid economic growth of Brazil, as the country strives to become one of the world's powerhouses. 

 

Italy, and Veneto in this case, is the stage where the adventures of two Brazilian oriundi (Brazilian-Italians) are set. They are but two of millions of Brazilian of Italian origins, while Jengafilm is the protagonists of a story of television and cinema which smells of adventure, re-discovery of one's origins, but also of exoticism and modernity. 

 

The main character of the TV Series, Marco (interpreted by Rafael Tombini, an oriundo too), is a journalist from the southern Brazilian region of Serra Gaúcha, where many Venetians migrated to, and where the dialect of Veneto and traditions such as wine making are still maintained today. Marco and his best friend Simone (interpreted by Arthur Pinto), a photographer and failed bar owner, fly to Rome and quickly travel to Veneto, to shoot a TV programme on Italian food. This is how begins the adventure, which sees them incur in dozens of exhilarating situations. 

 

Jengafilm followed the nine people Brazilian crew throughout all the phases of the shooting in Italy. To produce the four episodes of the series which are set in Italy, Jengafilm provided five months of pre-production, contributed to twenty days of shooting, assisted more than 800 takes, found 10 professional Italian actors and 60 extras. And especially, Jengafilm showed a great deal of endurance, since it accompanied the staff of the main production house, Epifania Filmes, in a journey of 3000 kilometers, through more than 50 filming spots between the cities and towns of Verona, Padova, Vicenza, Venezia, Belluno, Pedavena,  Arsiè and Auronzo di Cadore.

 

More importantly, after contributing to the production of the series which sees the Brazilians go back to their origins, this month Jengafilm will trace back the journey of Italian immigrants to Brazil, to attend the launch of Sapore d'Italia in Porto Alegre. During the trip Jengafilm staff will visit Bento Gonçalves and the other places in southern Brazil where the first episode of the TV series is set. All these places were built by Italian immigrants to resemble their native lands.But the landing of Jengafilm in Brazil will also be a chance to evaluate the new projects which RBS TV has in store for 2010, many of which explore the relationship between Veneto and Brazil, in the year that Brazilian authorities have dedicated to Italians in Brazil.