INCE - Instituto Nacional de Cinema Educativo

The past of a region that grew on the foundations of the faith, through the catechesis of the Jesuits who formed the theocratic kingdom of the Guarani.

An amalgamation of accents and life experiences from different parts of Brazil reunited on the city of Brasília.

Brazilian documentary film directed by Salvyano Cavalcanti de Paiva that showcases the evolution of Brazilian artists in the American film industry between the late 1920s and 1950s. Using archive footage, it highlights the contributions of figures like Carmen Miranda.

Aspects of the life of the Kamaiurá, an indigenous tribe that inhabits the Upper Xingu. The manioc-based food, the training with bow and arrow and the work carried out by the young Indian, the girls learn how to spin, and the boys develop the knowledge of the tribe with the shamans. An important rite is the Kuarup, which honors a great dead leader. The procedures for the rite: the decoration of tree trunks, the painting of bodies, the dance choreography, the physical confrontation between the Indians. Finally, the trunks are taken by children to the waters of the Xingu River.

Animations (only parts in nuclei in the film) and images, many of them archival and foreign, illustrate that the notion of time is associated with movement and its measurement is performed by the rotation of the Earth around its axis and the Sun. The angle of inclination of the Earth in this last movement also marks the climatic seasons. From the need for greater accuracy in measuring time, gnomons and solar quadrants arose, for whose reading the duodecimal numbering is used. Based on this numbering, time zones and mechanical measuring devices were established, illustrated by the clock mechanism with a church bell. The evolution of astronomy determines the creation of more accurate electronic devices for the evaluation of time, such as the meridian telescope, the Markowitz chamber, the electronic oscillators and the telescope, with which astronomers work at the National Observatory.

The need for water in human life.

A look at the now abandoned production farms, substituted by power plants.

A panoramic view of the architecture of St. João Del Rei.

Aspects of the city of Congonhas do Campo. The preponderance of baroque architecture, the Basilica of Senhor Bom Jesus de Matozinho, the six chapels on the terrace leading to Morro do Maranhão. Each chapel contains statues representing moments of the Passion of Christ. While in the first chapel there is Santa Ceia figuration, in the second there is the Passo Horto scene. The kiss of betrayal and the imprisonment of Christ before the scene of the third chapel. In the fourth, two scenes are gathered: the coronation and the flagellation. On the fifth, the Christ bears the cross and the crucifixion is featured in the sixth chapel. The twelve apostles of Aleijadinho and the Latin inscriptions of each one. The interior of the Basilica and its main altar, with the figure of the Lord Dead.

A morning in the farm shown with a beautiful musical background.

The popular song Chuá Chuá, illustrated with scenes of rural life. Girl observes in window. A fountain drains water. A flower. The cattle grazing. River waters. Man seen from window of wattle and daub house. Girl hangs cage with bird. Man walks towards the gate. Ducks in river drink water. The popular song A Casinha Pequenina, illustrated with scenes from rural life. Hut surrounded by banana trees and a coconut tree. Children walk hand in hand, sit on the riverbank. Birds in cages. Again the little house and the vegetation that surrounds it, especially the coconut tree.

A panel of the capital of Minas Gerais at the end of the 1950s. Aspects of its modern layout, the result of a pre-established urban plan, with its communication routes, squares and public buildings. Understanding the history of the city and its geographical location. Considerations on teaching, commerce and industry. Pampulha and residential neighborhoods.

The planning of the city, linking its architecture to its topography and the reasons that allow it to have normal and continuous traffic, eliminating the circulation problems of all major cities. Details of the buildings destined for the Government, the residences and the commerce. (Brazilian Cinematheque)