Letícia Pinheiro

The year was 1941, and the world was on the brink of war. In an effort to improve relations between the Americas, the Roosevelt administration called upon one of Hollywood’s most influential filmmakers to embark on a special goodwill tour. Written and directed by Theodore Thomas (“Frank and Ollie”) and produced by Kuniko Okubo, the documentary WALT & EL GRUPO chronicles the amazing ten-week trip that Walt Disney and his hand-picked group of artists and filmmaking talent (later known as “El Grupo”) took to South America at the behest of the U.S. Government as part of the Good Neighbor Policy.

Every year 288 thousand people attempt suicide in Brazil. The film documents the creative process of actors preparing a play about the re-encounter of a girl who has attempted suicide with her friends from a theatre group. The idea is to give a voice to the young people, those who have attempted, the friends and relatives of those who survive and those who die. The documentary proposes a recovery of self-esteem and hope for those who consider suicide, encouraging all to give a new meaning to their existence, indicating the possibility of new choices and pathways.