With the help of Netflix, Carlos Saldanha is making the jump from animation to live-action. The Brazilian filmmaker, known for his work writing and directing films like Ice Age, Rio and Ferdinand, is readying his very first television series, Cidade invisível (Invisible City) for the streaming service. Not only is the project taking him out of the animated world but it’s also letting him return to his native Brazil. Described in a press release as a legal thriller that “will take Brazilian folklore stories to the world under a contemporary perspective,” the Netflix and Prodigo Films-backed show began production in São Paulo, Ubatuba and Rio de Janeiro just this past week.
Actor Marco Pigossi (Tidelands, Onde nascem os fortes) stars as a detective from the Environmental Police Station. After finding a strange dead animal on a beach in Rio de Janeiro, the policeman engages in a secret murder investigation and finds himself in the middle of a battle between two worlds — ours, as we know it, and another inhabited by mythical entities, invisible to humans. In its description, it sounds like a fitting pair with Frontera verde, yet another South American Netflix production that put folklore front and center. Proof that the company’s commitment to regional fare around the world hopes to uplift story lines and scenarios not often seen anywhere else. As Pigossi put it on Instagram when sharing the news, he and his director are excited to be sharing a story that showcases their roots, their legends and their folklore. They look forward to making a show that puts their country’s best face forward and spreads their culture which has been so vilely trampled as of late.
Cidade invisível is coming soon to Netflix.
