In the city of Salvador, in northeastern Brazil, is a community called Alagados that is stricken with overwhelming poverty, crime, and lack of opportunity. In the midst of these problems, is a group of vibrant young people with an infectious joy for life who are determined to overcome the odds by reclaiming their cultural heritage and artistic expression. Their dreams for a better future are the inspiration for this project.
The Alagados project, in partnership with Grupo Cultural Bagunçaço and TV Lata, puts cameras into the hands of these young people so that they can document their own lives and tell their own stories.
Alagados: Sim, Não Mau Conduto, a documentary film short, tells the story of 23-year old Renato. Born into a society that marginalizes him and his peers, Renato is a striking ex-criminal who chooses to defy the stereotype and engage in the active development of his own identity. Drawn to the rhythms of an Afro-Brazilian percussion drumming group, Renato is offered an opportunity he could only have dreamed of and navigates difficult choices for his future.
The Alagados College Scholarship Fund enables youth from the community who have passed the difficult vestibular (entrance exam) but can’t afford tuition, to have the opportunity to go to college. The Scholarship Fund is founded on the belief that education provides a way for these youth to both overcome the odds that they face and to inspire greater social change.
