José Padilha
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José Bastos Padilha Neto (; born 1 August 1967) is a Brazilian
film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...
, producer and
screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...
. He is best known for directing the Brazilian critical and financial successes ''
Elite Squad ''Elite Squad'' (, ) is a 2007 Brazilian crime film based on the novel '' Elite da Tropa'' by Luiz Eduardo Soares, André Batista, and Rodrigo Pimentel. Directed by José Padilha (from a screenplay by Padilha, Bráulio Mantovani, and Piment ...
'' and '' Elite Squad: The Enemy Within'' and the 2014 remake of ''
RoboCop ''RoboCop'' is a 1987 American Science fiction film, science fiction action film directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner. The film stars Peter Weller, Nancy Allen (actress), Nancy Allen, Dan O'Herlihy, Dani ...
''. He has won the
Golden Bear The Golden Bear () is the highest prize awarded for the best film at the Berlin International Film Festival and is, along with the Palme d'Or and the Golden Lion, the most important international film festival award. The bear is the heraldic an ...
at the
Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...
for ''Elite Squad'' in 2008. He is also the producer of the
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original series Original programming (also called originals or original programs, and subcategorized as "original series", "original movies", "original documentaries" and "original specials") is a term used for in-house television, film or web series productions ...
''
Narcos ''Narcos'' is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Chris Brancato, Carlo Bernard, and Doug Miro. Set and filmed in Colombia, seasons 1 and 2 are about Colombian narcoterrorist and drug lord Pablo Escobar, leader ...
'', starring frequent collaborator
Wagner Moura Wagner Maniçoba de Moura (; born 27 June 1976) is a Brazilian actor, voice-actor and filmmaker. His accolades include the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor for his performance in ''The Secret Agent'' (2025), as well as a Golden Globe n ...
, and directed the first two episodes in the series.


Early life

Padilha was born in
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...
. Before making films, he studied business, politics, and economics in Rio de Janeiro. He attended
Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...
and studied literature and international politics. In 1997, Padilha co-founded the production company Zazen Produções with Marcos Prado, whom he met at Oxford. In the years to come, Zazen Produções would become hugely instrumental in his film making affairs.


Career

Padilha emerged onto the Brazilian movie scene with his first feature film ''
Bus 174 ''Bus 174'' () is a 2002 Brazilian documentary film. It is the directorial debut of director José Padilha and co-director Felipe Lacerda. Overview In 2000, Sandro do Nascimento, a young man from a poor background, held passengers on a bus hos ...
'' (2002). The film was a documentary feature produced by his production company; it detailed the story of a bus hijacking in his hometown. Employing his interest in politics, Padilha used the film to show how social engineered poverty in Rio de Janeiro had an effect on crime. The movie was a success, earning $217,201 at the box office, but caused controversy for some who believed that Padilha was sympathizing with a criminal, and portraying the police as incompetent and corrupt. The film received a lot of attention in several film festivals, including
Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...
,
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, and
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
. In 2007, Padilha directed ''
Elite Squad ''Elite Squad'' (, ) is a 2007 Brazilian crime film based on the novel '' Elite da Tropa'' by Luiz Eduardo Soares, André Batista, and Rodrigo Pimentel. Directed by José Padilha (from a screenplay by Padilha, Bráulio Mantovani, and Piment ...
'', his first semi-fictional film. The film was a commercial and critical success, seen by more than 11 million people in Brazil, coming in at number 1 in 2007. In 2008, Padilha won the
Golden Bear The Golden Bear () is the highest prize awarded for the best film at the Berlin International Film Festival and is, along with the Palme d'Or and the Golden Lion, the most important international film festival award. The bear is the heraldic an ...
at the
Berlin Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...
for ''Elite Squad'', bringing him international attention. The budget was just over 6 million dollars and included funding from the
Weinstein Company The Weinstein Company, LLC (usually credited or abbreviated as TWC) was an American independent film production and film distribution, distribution company, which was founded in New York City by Bob Weinstein, Bob and Harvey Weinstein on March 10 ...
, and several others. This film sparked discussions regarding police brutality in Brazil, as well as their alleged involvement with gang related activities. Due to the success of ''Elite Squad'', a 2010 sequel was released: '' Elite Squad: The Enemy Within''. It still holds the record highest domestic grossing film and all-time largest box office ticket sales in Brazil. This film was selected as Brazil's official
Academy Awards The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...
' entry in 2012 for Best Foreign Film, but it did not make the final shortlist. The films form part of a planned trilogy, examining the influence of media, police and politicians on society. After ''Elite Squad'', Padilha made two more documentary films. The first documentary was '' Garapa'', which follows a family of three fighting to stave off hunger in Brazil. The documentary film '' Secrets of the Tribe'' premièred at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival to critical acclaim. This film explores certain allegations first brought to light in Patrick Tierney's book ''
Darkness in El Dorado ''Darkness in El Dorado: How Scientists and Journalists Devastated the Amazon'' is a polemical book written by author Patrick Tierney in 2000, in which the author accuses geneticist James Neel and anthropologist Napoleon Chagnon (the author of ...
'' (2000), that anthropologists studying the
Yanomami The Yanomami, also spelled Yąnomamö or Yanomama, are a group of approximately 35,000 indigenous people of the Americas, indigenous people who live in some 200–250 villages in the Amazon rainforest on the border between Venezuela and Brazil. ...
Indians in the 1960s and 1970s engaged in bizarre and inappropriate interactions with the tribe, including sexual and medical violations. After the huge success of both ''Elite Squad'' films, Padilha was offered several films by
Sony Pictures Entertainment Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. is an American diversified multinational mass media and entertainment studio conglomerate that produces, acquires, and distributes filmed entertainment (theatrical motion pictures, television programs, and rec ...
. He declined them all before deciding to film a reboot of the 1987 sci-fi classic, ''
RoboCop ''RoboCop'' is a 1987 American Science fiction film, science fiction action film directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner. The film stars Peter Weller, Nancy Allen (actress), Nancy Allen, Dan O'Herlihy, Dani ...
''. Padilha said, "I went to into Sony and they were offering me a lot of movies, but none of them were ''Robocop''. I didn't want to make any of those movies they were talking about. And there was a ''Robocop'' poster in the room. Eventually I said to them, do you own ''Robocop''? And they go like, 'Yeah'…and I said, you know, I want to do it…" On March 2, 2011, it was announced that Padilha would direct the rebooted ''RoboCop'' film. The film was released on February 12, 2014. Padilha continued with his political narrative by using the film to illustrate the dangers and moral hazards of automated violence.The film grossed over $240 million worldwide and was met with a mixed reception by critics.


Filmography


Film


Television


Music video


Awards and nominations


References

Tauris, I.B. ‘Revisiting the "realism" of the cosmetics of hunger: Cidade de Deus and Ônibus 174’.


External links

* * https://www.taking-over.com/padilhaistakingover
Indiewire News
{{DEFAULTSORT:Padilha, Jose 1967 births Living people Mass media people from Rio de Janeiro (city) Brazilian film directors Brazilian film producers Brazilian screenwriters Brazilian male screenwriters Alumni of the University of Oxford Directors of Golden Bear winners