Philanthropist Olga Rabinovich, a transformative figure in the landscape of Brazilian cinema, will be honored as the first-ever recipient of the Prêmio Encontros (Encounters Award). The accolade will be presented at this year’s Encontro de Ideias Audiovisuais, the industry-focused platform held in conjunction with the prestigious São Paulo International Film Festival. The award serves as a formal recognition of Rabinovich’s tireless commitment to nurturing Brazilian talent, fostering international industry partnerships, and elevating the global profile of domestic filmmaking through her foundational work with the Projeto Paradiso initiative.
The Prêmio Encontros was established with the specific goal of highlighting the vital, often transformative role that private investment plays in the cultural sector. By bridging the gap between private funders and the creative professionals who drive audiovisual production, the award aims to foster a more sustainable and collaborative environment for filmmakers. Rabinovich is set to receive this inaugural honor during the festival’s opening gala ceremony on October 14. Following the presentation, she will participate in an exclusive in-conversation event featuring Neon president Jeff Deutchman, providing a platform for further dialogue on the future of independent cinema and international distribution.
A Mission Rooted in Human Connection
The journey that led to the creation of the Olga Rabinovich Institute is deeply personal. Born in São Paulo, Rabinovich’s path to becoming a pillar of the film industry was not traditional. For years, she dedicated herself to volunteer work in hospitals, offering comfort and support to terminally ill patients. This period of intense human connection profoundly shaped her worldview, instilling in her a deep empathy and a firm belief that the stories people share can possess a world-changing power.
In 2018, she translated this conviction into action by founding the Olga Rabinovich Institute. Shortly thereafter, she launched Projeto Paradiso. The initiative was born out of a clear, strategic vision: to invest directly in the people behind the stories, providing them with the resources, training, and global exposure necessary to bring their work to audiences around the world. As she noted in earlier discussions, her support for cinema stems from a genuine love for the medium. "You enter a screening room without knowing whether you’ll be elated or disturbed or moved," she has said. "It’s a transformative experience. I think it’s incredible to have a communal artistic experience that moves you like this."
The Inspiration Behind the Award
For Renata de Almeida, the director of the São Paulo International Film Festival, naming Rabinovich as the first recipient was a natural, almost inevitable choice. "Olga Rabinovich is the first recipient of the newly created Prêmio Encontros because she was the inspiration behind the award," de Almeida explained.
The director recalled the inception of their partnership, noting that she first heard of Rabinovich in early 2018. Josephine Bourgois approached the festival with a vision of a private-sector leader eager to establish an institute dedicated to cinema. The announcement of the Olga Rabinovich Institute during the 42nd Mostra (São Paulo International Film Festival) arrived at a critical juncture for the Brazilian film industry, providing a significant boost of morale and financial support during a period characterized by widespread uncertainty for culture in Brazil.
Reflecting on the eight-year evolution of the partnership, de Almeida emphasized the tangible impact of the initiative. "Eight years later, Projeto Paradiso has already made a major contribution to discovering and championing a new generation of talent, strengthening Brazil’s audiovisual sector as a whole," she said. Beyond the professional metrics and the successful projects, de Almeida retains a personal memory of the collaboration: a meeting with Rabinovich in the festival’s modest offices, climbing winding stairs for a "somewhat chaotic coffee." It is a memory that reinforces the festival director’s philosophy: "In the end, almost everything really does begin with an encounter."
Empowering a New Generation of Brazilian Talent
Projeto Paradiso operates as a multifaceted support system for Brazilian screen professionals, designed to maximize their presence on the global stage. Its reach is extensive, offering a variety of fellowships, residencies, and specialized workshops. The "Paradiso Talent Network" now includes 278 Brazilian professionals, each of whom has benefited from the initiative’s commitment to skill-building and international outreach.
To ensure that these creators can navigate the global market effectively, the organization has built a robust network of over 250 partner institutions both within Brazil and abroad. This infrastructure includes some of the world’s most influential organizations in independent cinema, such as the Hubert Bals Fund, La Fabrique Cinéma de l’Institut français, the TorinoFilmLab, Film Independent, and the Sundance Institute.
The fruits of this investment are visible in the success of recent festival titles. Projects backed by the initiative include Allan Deberton’s Berlinale-winning Gugu’s World and Grace Passô’s Our Secret. Furthermore, the talent network has supported prominent figures and rising stars alike, including Anita Rocha da Silveira (known for Medusa), Juliana Rojas (Good Manners), and Dira Paes (Manas).
Strategic Growth and Global Distribution
In 2025, the scope of Projeto Paradiso’s support expanded further through a partnership with the Embratur Brazilian Tourism Board to launch "Screen Brasil." This initiative focuses on the crucial final stage of the filmmaking process: distribution. By providing support for international distribution campaigns, Screen Brasil helps ensure that Brazilian films reach foreign markets. The program invites submissions from international sales agents holding the commercial rights to the films. Recent titles backed under this banner include Gabriel Mascaro’s The Blue Trail, Rafaela Camelo’s The Nature of Invisible Things, and the animated feature Papaya.
The relationship between Projeto Paradiso and the São Paulo International Film Festival has grown in tandem with the initiative’s success. Since its launch at the 42nd edition of the festival, the organization has consistently increased its involvement. In 2023, it introduced the annual Paradiso Distribution Support Award, which provides a direct grant for the theatrical release of a fiction feature. Furthermore, in 2024, the collaboration reached a new milestone when the festival and the Hubert Bals Fund (HBF) partnered to create HBF+Brazil, an initiative that grew directly out of preliminary discussions held at the Encontro de Ideias.
As the festival prepares for its milestone 50th edition, running from October 15 to October 29, the awarding of the Prêmio Encontros to Olga Rabinovich serves as both a celebration of past achievements and a testament to the power of the ongoing, collaborative relationship between private philanthropy and the creative arts. By focusing on the "encounters" that make filmmaking possible, the festival continues to highlight the human stories behind the screens, honoring those who ensure that these stories reach the widest possible audience.
