Fabio Barreto

Fabio Barreto was a Brazilian film director and producer, who came from a well-known family of filmmakers. He was the youngest son of Luiz Carlos Barreto and Lucy Barreto, and the brother of Bruno Barreto. He started his career as an actor in his brother's first short film when he was nine years old, and later became an assistant director, production assistant, and production manager. He made his directorial debut in 1985 with the film O Homem Nu, based on a novel by Fernando Sabino. Barreto's most acclaimed film was O Quatrilho, released in 1995, which was the first Brazilian film to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film since O Pagador de Promessas in 1962. The film tells the story of two Italian immigrant couples who settle in the south of Brazil in the early 20th century and swap partners. The film was also a box office success in Brazil and abroad. Barreto also directed other films, such as Bela Donna (1998), a romantic drama set in the northeast of Brazil, starring Natasha Henstridge and Andrew McCarthy; A Paixão de Jacobina (2002), a historical drama about a religious sect that rebelled against the Brazilian Empire in the 19th century; and Lula, o filho do Brasil (2009), a biographical film about the early life of former Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, which was the most expensive film in the history of Brazilian cinema at the time of its release. Barreto suffered a car accident on December 19, 2009, in Rio de Janeiro, and went into a coma. He remained in a coma for almost ten years, until his death on November 20, 2019, at the age of 62. He was survived by his wife, Débora Kalume, and his son, João.