SON OF A BITCH

Brazil | 2026 | 73′
In Portuguese with Slovenian and English subtitles

ABOUT THE FILM

In the small village of Veredas stands Casa Rosa, a famous brothel run by Ismael’s mother. Because of this, he is known as the “Son of a Bitch”. Trying to leave that reality behind, Ismael leaves his mother in pursuit of the two things he has never met: his dad and the ocean. Carrying the only memory he has of his father, a copy of the book Moby Dick, he sets out to cross the arid backlands of Brazil, alongside his three-legged dog Bacalhau, on a journey that will show him that he cannot escape himself or his destiny.

CREW

Directed by: Erica Maradona, Tania Anaya, Otto Guerra, Sávio Leite
Written by: Carla Guimarães
Music: João Omar, Erica Maradona
Director of Photography and Editing: Marco Arru
Sound Design: Sérgio Scliar, Fabiano Fonseca and Henrique Staino
Art Director: Erica Maradona
Producers: Cissa Carvalho, Victória Kaminski
Production: Otto Desenhos Animados, Anaya Produções
Cast: Gabriel Martins, Matheus Nachtergaele, Zora Santos, Inês Peixot
Distribution in Slovenia: Cenex / Fivia

DIRECTORS’ STATEMENT

Producing an animated feature film in an independent Latin American studio, using regional elements, is costly and demands a great deal of faith from everyone involved. Not faith in the religious sense, but a belief in the work being created, even when the outlook seems uncertain. Son of a Bitch took nearly ten years to come to life. During that time, we faced a coup d’état in Brazil and countless political uncertainties that, at many moments, made us doubt whether this film would ever be completed.

We are deeply happy to have finished a film that carries the richness of our culture, our landscapes, our colors, and that is also capable of resonating beyond our borders, as we have witnessed in the countries where the project circulated while still in production.

Finally, we would like to highlight the choice of a raw and bold art direction combined with full 2D animation, which required intense human craftsmanship and the sensitivity of attentive and hopeful eyes.

AWARDS AND FESTIVALS (SELECTION)

  • Contrechamp Award Nominee, Annecy IAFF 2026
  • Marché du Film, Cannes FF 2026
  • Special Mention, Animafest Zagreb 2026
  • Official Competition, Animation Is Film Festival 2026
  • Official Competition, Ottawa IAF 2026