Honestino film premieres to depict Brazilian dictatorship resistance

The film ‘Honestino’ has premiered in 18 Brazilian cities, depicting the life of Honestino Guimarães, a student leader and president of the National Union of Students (UNE) who was arrested and killed by the military regime in 1973.

Actor Bruno Gagliasso, who portrays Guimarães, emphasized the necessity of expanding cinematic works regarding Brazil’s military dictatorship (1964-1985). Producer Nilson Rodrigues noted a disparity in historical film production, stating that while Argentina has produced over one hundred films on the subject, Brazil has produced approximately thirty.

Directed by Aurélio Michiles, the film utilizes a hybrid language of documentary and fiction. This approach was necessitated by a scarcity of archival footage, as student activists during the 1960s and 1970s often avoided filming or photographing protests to prevent identification by repressive state agents. The production incorporates rare historical records, including footage from 1968, alongside dramatized scenes and testimonies from family and friends.