Fernanda Pessoa is a Brazilian filmmaker and visual artist, working primarily on documentary, experimental cinema, and video installations. A Ph.D. candidate at the University of São Paulo (ECA/USP), she holds an MFA in Film Studies at the Sorbonne Nouvelle, under Philippe Dubois’ direction.

Available for Q&As, Masterclasses, panels, and workshops upon request, in English, Portuguese, Spanish, or French.
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In 2017, Pessoa released her first feature documentary, Stories Our Cinema Did (not) Tell (Histórias que nosso cinema (não) contava, 2017), which participated in over 25 film festivals around the globe. She has directed several short films, music videos, and has participated in solo and group exhibitions internationally.

In 2019, her second feature documentary film Arid Zone received an Honorable Mention at DOK Leipzig. She’s currently working on a new video-art piece called Order Prevails, which has already been selected for competition in the Videoarte Award of Fundação Joaquim Nabuco. Her film Swing and Sway (2022), screened at Sheffield DocFest, DokLeipzig, and Olhar de Cinema, RIDM.

She has also directed several short films Same/Different/Both/Neither (2020, IDFA, IDA Shortlisted, DOC NYC), Order Prevails (2022, It’s All True, BIENALSUR), and Solidarity (2022, Oberhausen).

She’s currently working on the pre-production of her 4th documentary, Roofless, and on the development of Frame, her first fiction feature, selected for the Berlinale EFM Fiction Toolbox and PAS Nantes.

Pessoa is a Berlinale Talents Alumni and part of the Paradiso Talent Network.