UNBOUND revisits the trajectory of Antônio Carlos Gomes as a grand human opera, structured through overtures and emotional crescendos that reveal the man behind the music. Trained at the Milan Conservatory, Gomes was a protagonist at the heart of the global opera scene, flourishing within the same creative fervor as masters like Giuseppe Verdi.
In 1870, with the premiere of Il Guarany at the prestigious Teatro alla Scala, he consolidated his acclaim and established the presence of Brazilian identity in a space previously dominated by European traditions. However, his rise in Italy was marked by tensions between success and erasure, requiring a complex process of cultural adaptation to survive in the centers of prestige.
The film highlights this fragile balance between belonging and displacement, transforming his final days in Brazil into a profound reconnection with his roots. By elevating Gomes’s historical stature, UNBOUND turns his life into a stage for reflecting on the human condition and the recognition of a genius who united two worlds.
ANTÔNIO CARLOS GOMES
(JEAN WILLIAM)
A man of strong temperament, decisive and determined. A talented artist whose life was marked by the tragedy of his mother's murder, by poverty, and by the prejudice suffered in his own country, in a struggle for abolition.
Under the patronage and protection of Dom Pedro II, who saw in his genius the symbol of the Empire's cultural identity, he crossed the Atlantic to conquer the Old World. Carlos Gomes did not merely share the prestige of the stage with giants like Verdi and Puccini, but challenged European hegemony by translating the Brazilian soul into opera.
However, his rise sparked the fury of Mazzoni, the ambitious Italian businessman who dominated the exchange of international companies. Fearing the Emperor's project to establish a National Opera Company, Mazzoni orchestrated maneuvers to sabotage and destroy the composer's career. Even surrounded by intrigue and facing the weight of his own history, Gomes staked his life and talent on creating works that immortalized Brazil in the heart of world classical music.
OTHER CHARACTERS
D. PEDRO II
( Gileade Batista)
A visionary and humanist monarch who implemented a sewage system and gas lighting, he found himself divided between two battles: the Paraguayan War, which he tried to prevent at all costs, and the construction of a Brazilian identity rooted in its culture. The relationship between the emperor, Dom Pedro II, and the maestro represented, beyond a deep friendship grounded in a shared love of art, a struggle to define the kind of nation that would be built.
EMPRESS
( Julia Cavalcanti)
Teresa Cristina de Bourbon-Duas Sicílias, wife of Dom Pedro II, was a central, though discreet, figure in the Empire. Born in 1822, she brought to Brazil a strong interest in the arts, archaeology, and culture.
She supported artists, funded studies, and assembled important collections. Known as the “Mother of Brazilians,” she stood out for her generosity, simplicity, and devotion to the country, remaining so until her exile with the imperial family.
AMBROSINA
(Anna Helena)
Ambrosina was the first great love of Antônio Carlos Gomes and maintained a relationship with him during the periods when the composer was in Brazil. Outside official circles, she was a woman of humble origins, marked by discretion and tenderness. Her constant presence over those years reveals a deep and affectionate bond, shedding light on the composer’s more intimate and human dimension.
CAST & SPECIAL APPEARANCES
JEAN WILLIAM
Jean William - International Highlights:
2012 – Performance at Lincoln Center, New York
2013 – Performance for Pope Francis
2014 – Performance at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
2018 – Opera de Monte-Carlo, by invitation of the Prince of Monaco
2025 – Juca Pirama Opera – COP30 / TV France
2026 – Performance at Coliseu dos Recreios, Lisbon (Portugal)
MARIA FERNANDA CÂNDIDO
Maria Fernanda Cândido - Filmography Highlights:
2015 – My Hindu Friend
2019 – The Traitor (Il Traditore)
2021 – Bastardi a Mano Armata
2022 – Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore
2023 – The Book of Wonders (Les Chambres des Merveilles)
2024 – Vermelho Monet
2024 – Weightless (Sulla Terra Leggeri)
2025 – The Secret Agent (O Agente Secreto)
SONIA RUBISNKY
Sonia Rubinsky is an internationally recognized pianist, with award-winning recordings of works by Heitor Villa-Lobos and Leopold Godowsky. She has received both the Latin Grammy Award and the APCA Award, and is noted for her technical precision and sensitive interpretation of classical and Brazilian repertoire.
OS GERALDOS
Os Geraldos, based in Campinas, have accumulated 44 awards over their 15 years of activity. They are known for productions such as “Números,” “Hay Amor!,” “O Drama,” “Rasto Atrás,” and “Cordel do Amor sem Fim,” as well as for their national and international touring and participation in major festivals.
Project Status: Development Fully Funded & Completed.
Selected by: The Brazil-Italy Bilateral Development Fund (ANCINE & DGCOL).
Estimated Budget: €3.5M.
Who We Are
ARIANE PORTO
DIRECTOR
A producer and director of theater, film, and television active since the 1980s, she has produced and directed more than 30 stage productions and received numerous awards. She is the director of ECOCINE – International Environmental and Human Rights Film Festival.
Her feature films include Guaiá dos Mares (1997), A Ilha do Terrível Rapaterra (2006), Topografia de um Desnudo (2009), Bem-te-vi (2011), O Crime da Cabra (2016), and Mama Minha! (2022). She has also created television series such as Assembléia dos Bichos, TV Povos do Mar, and As Jóias da Princesa, and co-produced documentary series with TV Brasil (Travessia, 2009) and SESC TV (Na Sombra da História, 2014).
She is a founding partner of the Centro Cultural Teatro de Arte e Ofício (1984), a partner of the Centro Cultural Teatro Rotunda (since 1984), a founding partner of the Centro Cultural São Sebastião Tem Alma (1989), and a founding partner of T.A.O Produções Artísticas (2002).
Main Awards
Mama Minha! - Breast is Mine! (feature documentary)
Best Feature Film – Paris Festival 2022
Best Film – Santa Monica (USA) International Filmmaker Awards 2023
Finalist: Berlin Women Cinema Festival 2023;
Chicago Indie Film Awards 2023;
Atlanta Movie Awards 2023;
New York International Women Festival 2023
RENATA SUNEGA
PRODUCER
Renata Sunega is a producer at T.A.O Produções Artísticas and a partner at Renata Sunega Studio de Criação – Amora Brava. She develops projects that connect entertainment, art, and culture, notably the short film Rabisco, for which she wrote, directed, and produced. The film was selected for the XVI Festival de Cine: Infancia y Adolescencia (Bogotá, 2025), was a semifinalist at the New England Animation Festival (2025), received an award at Kidfestival (Málaga, Spain, 2026), and is currently available on the educational platform Zeroplus (Russia).
As an executive producer, she stands out for her work on the feature film O Crime da Cabra, by T.A.O Produções Artísticas—a “film-school” project combining professional production with the training of new audiovisual talents, featuring actors such as Lima Duarte, Arlete Salles, and Laura Cardoso—as well as the documentary Cândido, by Ethos Produções. She also served as administrative director of the 32nd and 33rd editions of ECOCINE – International Environmental and Human Rights Film Festival (2024 and 2025).
She currently serves on the board of the Centro Cultural Teatro Rotunda, the first theater group in the interior of the state of São Paulo, founded in 1973, and of the Centro Cultural “São Sebastião Tem Alma,” responsible for the Bem-te-vi project, which offers audiovisual workshops for children and teenagers aged 6 to 17, consolidating her work in cultural education and outreach.
CONTACT
TAOPRODUCOES@UOL.COM.BR
RENATA@AMORABRAVA.COM.BR