Lázaro Ramos spent his 48th birthday in Culver City on Sunday, Nov. 1, as the 19th Los Angeles Brazilian Film Festival opened at The Culver Theater with Gugu’s World (Feito Pipa), Brazil’s submission for best international feature at the 2027 Academy Awards.
Ramos, who plays Batista, the father of the film’s young lead, has been one of the film’s most vocal champions since the Brazilian Academy of Cinema chose it in September. In an October interview with CNN Brasil, he said he believes in the film’s Oscar chances. He called it a step forward in how it handles a father-son relationship, a queer child, Alzheimer’s and the bond between a grandmother and her grandson. Before flying to Los Angeles, he spent the week promoting the film in São Paulo, Salvador, Fortaleza and Rio de Janeiro, BNews reported.
Directed by Allan Deberton and shot in Quixadá, in the northeastern state of Ceará, Gugu’s World follows Gugu (Yuri Gomes), a boy raised by his grandmother Dilma (Teca Pereira). When her health begins to fail, he faces leaving the life he knows to live with his father. The film premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in February in the Generation Kplus section, where it won the Crystal Bear and the section’s grand prize. It opens in Brazilian theaters Nov. 5 and screens in Chicago on Nov. 7.
A Black Brazilian star at the center of the Oscar push
Ramos is one of Brazil’s most prominent Black actors and filmmakers. He also directed Executive Order (Medida Provisória), and his visibility gives the campaign a familiar face for U.S. audiences. Brazil enters this race after I’m Still Here won the international feature Oscar in 2025. Gugu’s World is one of 17 Latin American submissions this year, which Cup of Soul broke down here.
Founded by executive director Meire Fernandes, LABRFF runs through Thursday, Nov. 5, with 45 films, all screening at The Culver Theater. Ten features are in competition, and audiences vote for best fiction feature. The festival closes Nov. 5 with Bruno Bini’s Five Kinds of Fear (Cinco Tipos de Medo), the top winner at Brazil’s Gramado Film Festival last year, followed by the awards ceremony.
