Nike Ginga: Country Of Gods


Beauty. Heart. Skill. Weapons to Live By. Ginga: The Movie

Nike Ginga Explained | Cast Of Characters | Fernando Meirelles

Brazilian football has always had a magical quality and a romance associated with it. As well as helping them win the World Cup a record five times, it is what makes Brazil everybody’s favourite team after their own country. But what sets Brazil and its football apart from the rest? A new film – entitled Ginga: The Soul of Brazilian Football – has been produced by renowned director Fernando Meirelles to explore this influence on football and life in Brazil.

Meirelles was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil in 1955. He made his first experimental production with a portable VHS camcorder and a group of friends during his time at university. The piece attracted interest and won several awards in the earliest independent film festivals in Brazil.

PAULO CESAR That same group of friends went on to create Brazen Studio Olhar Eletronico (Electronic Glance), which changed Brasilian TV in new and inventive ways in the 1980s. Ten years later, Meirelles founded his new studio O2 Films – the largest independent studio in Brasil.

Fernando Meirelles has directed several feature films including the critically acclaimed City of God, an adaptation of the best-selling novel Cidade de Deus by Paulo Lins, in 2002.

City of God went on to win more than 25 awards around the world and received four Academy Award nominations in 2004 for Best Director, Best Cinematographer, Best Editing and Best Adapted Screenplay.

Official sports products with fast worldwide delivery, gives you Your Kit-Quick! Catch the January Sales now! Following the success of City of God, O2 Films together with Globo Television produced nine episodes for the TV series City of Men in 2002. Meirelles produced all nine episodes and directed two.

Fernando’s latest directing project is the 2004 The Constant Gardner, a British independent production shot in Canada, Berlin, London and Kenya. He is currently working on his next feature film called Intolerance.

Talking about Ginga, he said: "As everyone knows, football is like a religion in Brazil and we are very religious. Talking and showing our body language is known as Ginga. This is how we try to understand what is special within Brazilians when it comes to football. The opportunity to create this documentary was something we just couldn’t pass up.

"Football in Brasil is much, much more than people realize. People young and old, rich and poor play football all over the country. Each region brings its own distinct flavor to the game, as they do to the country. Every part of Brazil has its legends, its hallowed grounds, and its players who possess a quality not found anywhere else in the world."

Watch the Video