On Location: How The Secret Agent captured the spirit of 1977 Brazil
Kleber Mendonça Filho used Recife’s real locations to recreate 1977 Carnival, juxtaposing colourful street celebrations with the oppressive reach of Brazil’s military dictatorship.
On Location: How 'The Secret Agent' Captured the Spirit of 1977 Brazil
Kleber Mendonça Filho filmed 90% of Secret Agent on-location in Recife, using Carnival 1977 real sites to juxtapose joyful festivities with political repression.
The Brazilian Director Who's Up for Multiple Oscars
Kleber Mendonça Filho uses film to reclaim Recife's lost history, exposing concealed social truths through memory, political critique, and genre-inflected art-house cinema.
"My 'Jaws' Obsession Had No Boundaries": Kleber Mendonca Filho on "The Secret Agent"
The Secret Agent reconstructs 1970s Recife through personal memory, political repression, and cinema's cultural power in an immersive, period-rich narrative.
