Herdeiros

Set in the favela of Morro da Serrinha in Rio, Herdeiros tells the story of the cultural and musical legacy of African slaves in current day Brazil. It traces Carnaval’s deep roots through the Afro-Brazilian communities and their tradition of orally passing down their ancestral culture and history to the next generations. Through interviews with important local cultural figures, we see how the joyous expressions of Samba and Jongo are a central part of the residents’ lives and how they are a positive developmental alternative to the governments directive of using more and more police force in these communities.