Cássio Pereira dos Santos

Born in 1980 in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, Cassio Pereira dos Santos studied filmmaking at the University of Brasilia, where he directed fiction and documentary projects. After finishing film school in 2003, he worked as an assistant director at other filmmakers projects. He wrote and directed eight short films, among them A Menina Espantalho (2008), A Mulher no Alto do Morro (2012) and Marina Nao Vai a Praia (2014). His works as a writer and director have been selected at several international film festivals, including the Warsaw Film Festival, OutFest Los Angeles LGBTQ Film Festival, Durban International Film Festival, BFI Flare London LGBTQ Film Festival, Zinegoak Bilbao, Aspen Short Film Fest, Palm Springs ShortsFest, Hamburg Short Film Festival , Seattle International Film Festival, Sao Paulo International Film Festival, Prix Jeunesse Munich, Brasilia Festival of Brazilian Cinema, Mostra de Cinema de Tiradentes and many others. His works received more than 60 awards. As a screenwriter, Cassio contributed to films such as Guigo Offline, by Rene Guerra, a feature film for Brazilian television, winner of the Best Brazilian Feature Film Award at Festival Mix Brasil. Valentina (2020) is his debut as a feature film director, having received 15 international awards, including the Audience Award at the 44th Sao Paulo International Film Festival and the Best Debut Director Director Award at the 51st International Film Festival of India 2021, in Goa. Valentina will be digitally released in Latin America and Spain soon, and will have a theatrical release in Japan and Sweden. Recently, Cassio was selected to attend the Berlinale Talents 2021, Buenos Aires edition. Currently he lives in Uberlandia (Minas Gerais, Brazil), and works on the development of other feature films and TV series ideas.