This course will explore elements of Brazil’s cultural and sociopolitical contexts as seen through the film production in different periods of its history.  Starting with films produced in the 1960s - with an emphasis on those belonging to the then innovative “Cinema Novo” movement — the course will discuss the political and cultural influences on the aesthetics of their time. Class discussions will center on readings and on the viewing of movies by the Brazilian directors Gláuber Rocha, Nélson Pereira dos Santos, Walter Salles and Carlos Diegues, among others.