Estamira

Marcos Prado's 2004 Brazilian documentary follows Estamira, sixty-three, who has lived for twenty years by picking waste at a large landfill near Rio. She has a diagnosis of schizophrenia and, when she speaks, sets out a view of the world she has built herself. What is interesting is that the documentary does not present what she says as a symptom. Her account has a consistent structure; what she says about religion, power and truth forms a system that works on its own terms, and the film does not try to correct it. Prado filmed over many years and recorded the period when she began treatment. The image moves between black and white and colour; the landscape of the landfill is the constant background. Who it's for: those who like Brazilian documentary and character portraits. Who it's not for: viewers sensitive to the representation of mental health; the film also records moments of crisis and the question of consent remains open.