Rio Breaks tells the story of two best friends, Fabio and Naama, as they navigate their way between life in the slums and surfing on their favorite beach. Thirteen-year-old Fabio and twelve-year-old Naama live in a huge favela near Arpoador Beach, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. What will happen to these best friends? Will their friendship survive the pressures of life in the favela? Can surfing offer a way out and the possibility of a better life?
This is the story of Rio Breaks.
FROM OUR UPCOMING PRESS RELEASE: The documentary tells the story of two best friends, Fabio and Naama, who live amid the squalor of a Rio de Janeiro favela but find solace in the slum’s precarious but vibrant surf club. The club’s hope: that the kids stay in the water instead of joining a drug gang. Earlier this year, Luciano Huck, host of one of Brazil’s most popular TV shows, watched the film, fell in love with it and decided to put all of his clout, resources and plain hard production cash (his programme has institutional status and draws about 12 million viewers every week) to help the film’s characters. In the program, which aired on March 6, Luciano meets Naama, who in
the film says that his dream is to go surfing in Hawaii. Luciano
surprises Naama when he stops by his house in the favela, TV cameras
in tow. At the end of the visit, he says he’ll not only take Naama to
Hawaii, but also introduce him to Kelly Slater, the world’s best
surfer. In exchange, Naama has to promise he’ll never join the drug
gang, keep going to school and agree to learn English. The filmmakers have started a
non-profit, the Rio Breaks Foundation, to get the new club up and
running, and Luciano will stay onboard and keep an eye on the project
as it moves forward. For all enquiries please contact justin@riobreaks.com |
