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Every year for the past 10 years, Kering has joined forces with the Cannes Film Festival to recognize groundbreaking women in film with its Women in Motion program, which highlights the creativity and contribution made by women — both on and off screen — in the world of culture and the arts. Kering continues its annual tradition of uplifting first-time feature filmmakers with its Women in Motion Emerging Talent Award, which includes a €50,000 ($57,000 USD) grant towards the laureate’s second feature. This year’s recipient is documentarian Marianna Brennand, who made the jump to narrative filmmaking with her debut feature “Manas.” She will receive the honor on May 18.
“Manas started a little more than 10 years ago when I first heard of what was happening in Marajó Island in the north of Brazil, with young girls and women being sexually exploited on the barges of the Japurá,” Brennand says. “As a documentarian, my first impulse was to do a documentary, to shed light on and denounce the situation. That’s what I started to do, but in the very early stages of the research, I understood it would be impossible for me to ethically tell this story as a documentary.”
Faced with the prospect of sitting young girls in front of a camera and asking them to recount their trauma but determined to tell their story, Brennand shifted gears. “I decided fiction was the only way to tell the story. The transition from documentary to fiction happened very organically. Fiction allowed me to go deeper into the reality and the mechanisms of abuse and trauma without imposing more violence.”
With eight years’ worth of research to draw from, Brennand had the new challenge of translating her research into a fictional script. “Figuring out how to adapt real, documentary facts into a fiction film, into three-dimensional characters, into a narrative. How to use the cinematic language to portray to the audience the consequences of trauma in that girl’s body and soul,” she says. “To have the power to create those layers through fiction, to use sound, to use cinematography to transport you to her reality. This enormity of nature [the Amazon Rainforest] that’s beautiful but also imprisoning this girl, and how nature dictates the rhythm of what’s going on with [the character].”
Brennand’s years of research also shaped her approach to directing the young leads of “Manas,” through the film’s many harrowing scenes. “I knew I would be working with a child — a 13-year-old girl — and for us to protect this girl’s mental and psychological health was of the utmost importance.” Her process included talking with the actors’ parents and conducting workshops with the girls. But when it came time for filming, Brennand was insistent on one thing.
“They never read the script. They did not need to know the specifics in order to give an amazing performance,” Brennand says. “I’m still amazed by Jamilli Correa’s performance. We rehearsed scenes, going through themes but not specifically telling her what was happening. The first time she [Correa] saw the film during post-production, she came up to me and was like ‘Oh Mari, I understand now. The hunting scene is the scene where the father abuses her.’ I did everything I could to protect them, to keep them safe.”
Regarding her principles and convictions as a filmmaker, Brennand credits her paternal grandfather for giving her a strong ethical foundation. “He had something he always told us, which in Portuguese translates to ‘shame has to be interior.’ Remorse has to come from within, not someone telling you you did something wrong. You have to be ethical because your internal principles tell you to, not because you were afraid to be caught, or you’re afraid someone is going to see.”
In addition to co-writing a script that deliberately avoids showing onscreen depictions of violence against women, Brennand emphasized the importance of giving Correa and the other young actresses on set a female director to look up to. “It’s important that we are able to speak our truth as women. Women directing women — and directing films about women and the feminine — is an opportunity for us to tell stories without the male gaze. To portray our reality and empower our voices, and to do so in a way that’s powerful but respectful, especially regarding our bodies.”
A grateful Brennand sees the opportunity to make “Manas” as a director, co-producer and co-writer a privilege. “I hope more and more spaces will open to women directors, screenwriters and producers, to give voice to our stories.”
As for what advice she’d give to young women interested in filmmaking: “Believe in yourself. We are so powerful. Believe in your voice. Follow your instincts and just be truthful to what you believe, and let no one tell you you cannot do what you want to do or believe what you want to. Surround yourself with the right people. Find the people that believe and trust your vision and not people that want to change your vision. Find people that have the same work ethics as you do, people that are going to support you. And surround yourself with women. Other strong, powerful, amazing women.”
In the spirit of surrounding herself with other strong women, Brennand says she’s particularly honored to be named Kering’s Women in Motion Emerging Talent Award recipient because the award is chosen by the prior year’s recipient.
“I’m still touched when we talk about it. This is a huge recognition, not only for what the award means, but to be chosen by another woman, a fellow filmmaker who is so talented and won the award last year. Amanda Nell Eu’s work is so brave and unique. I feel so emotional, this is so important. I’m the first Brazilian to win this award, so I’m representing my country. I’m representing my fellow women filmmakers. It’s a dream, really. I’m so proud.”
While Brennand has made strides as a filmmaker, for many other women in the industry, it’s been baby steps. In honor of a decade of Women in Motion, Kering also unveiled an “in-depth study on the evolution of gender equality in film” from Dr. Stacy L. Smith, founder of the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative. Though progress may be slow, Smith’s study found that the share of women directors has increased, from 7.5% to 13.6% among the top 100 box office films in the United States between 2015 and 2024.
While the study similarly found increases in female directors in the U.K. (8.3% in 2015 to 32.3% in 2024) and France (14.4% to 25.9%), Smith points out that there are still fewer female speaking characters overall, with only 25.3% of the characters in the movies surveyed women above the age of 40, and only 32% of speaking characters women.
English (US) ·