After a 26-year hiatus since his Academy Award-nominated film Central Station, director Walter Salles returns to the Oscar race with his latest feature, I’m Still Here. Brazil has officially chosen the film as its submission for the Best International Feature category at the 2025 Academy Awards.
The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival last month and had its North American debut at the Toronto International Film Festival. I’m Still Here is Salles’ first Brazilian feature in 16 years and is considered one of his most personal projects to date.
The story centers on the family of Rubens and Eunice Paiva during Brazil’s military dictatorship from 1964 to 1985. Close family friends of Salles, the Paivas played a significant role in his upbringing, as he spent much of his youth with their five children. Rubens Paiva was a Brazilian congressman who opposed the dictatorship; in 1971, he was arrested, tortured, and killed by the regime. The film follows Eunice as she navigates life after his death, striving to hold her shattered family together.
Adapted from Marcelo Rubens Paiva’s 2015 book Ainda Estou Aqui, the movie stars Fernanda Torres and Selton Mello. Sony Pictures Classics has acquired the North American distribution rights.
Brazil has been nominated four times for the Best International Feature Oscar but has yet to secure a win. The selection of I’m Still Here brings renewed hope for the country’s chances at the upcoming awards.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will announce the shortlist for the 2025 Oscars on December 17. Nominations are set to be revealed on January 17, 2025, with the 97th Academy Awards ceremony scheduled for Sunday, March 2.
