Exciting news from France and FilmEU!

The next edition of "La Factory des Cinéastes," an initiative by the Cannes Film Festival that has been discovering new talents worldwide for over a decade, counts with one Lusofona Alumini and one student. The Directors' Fortnight and the Factory team have announced that Stella Carneiro (Brazil) and Ary Zara (Portugal) will co-write and co-direct a short film together. This film will premiere in May 2025 at the Directors' Fortnight opening.

During the Cannes Festival, the directors will present their feature film projects to a panel of professionals (producers, institutions, sales agents) and participate in one-on-one meetings.

Stella Carneiro is a director and screenwriter from Maceió, Alagoas, with experience at some of Brazil’s leading production companies. Her shorts made in BFM during her Kino Eyes Masters have been selected for over 50 festivals. Her debut short film, "Golden Shower," produced with support from Lusófona University, premiered at IndieLisboa 2024 and was selected for Kurzfilmtage Winterthur in Switzerland. In 2025, she will shoot her comedy short "Party Pastel" in Brazil. Stella will join the Factory with her first feature project, "Daughters of the Mangrove."

She will partner with Ary Zara, a screenwriter and director from Portugal. Ary's debut short, "An Avocado Pit," produced by Elliot Page, was shortlisted for the 96th Academy Awards. He will shoot his second short "Tokos" in early 2025 and bring his first feature project, "Sun in Saturn," to the Factory, which has already won accolades at Torino Script Lab, Dot.on.the.map in Cyprus, and EAVE.

Both Stella and Ary have ties to Lusófona University. Stella completed the Kino Eyes master’s in screenwriting and is currently pursuing a PhD in Media Art and Communication. While Ary Zara studied Cinema and Multimedia Communication as his bachelors.