Lázaro Ramos celebrates creative freedom in film and literature

Considered one of the greatest Brazilian artists today, Lázaro Ramos leaves no doubt about his merit in each new work. Inventive and restless, he dominates the stages, TV, screens or set, as he demonstrated directing one of the most imposing films of 2022, Provisional Measure, and the pages, for at least ten years.

In his most recent literary work, Você Não É Invisível, published by Objetiva, he rescues his own story to speak to younger people about the power of words and the expectations we create for ourselves and for others.

In an interview with metropolises, Lázaro explains that Você Não É Invisível was born at the beginning of the pandemic, out of the desire to connect his children’s books with Na Minha Pele. The work, released in 2010, brings the author’s personal experiences and reflections on awareness, respect for differences and attitude.

“I didn’t know it was going to be a book for young people, but I intuitively started to write things that I wish I had heard in my youth. Like ‘you are not invisible’, ‘you don’t have to be alone in your troubles’. I wanted to talk about identity, freedom, about being impulsive, about ethics…”, she recalls.

For Lázaro, the choice of the young protagonists, the brothers Carlos and Vitória, came naturally, guided by his own memories. Additionally, he says he spoke to the audience he intended to reach throughout the writing.

“I understood that what I wanted to say to myself as a teenager made sense to young people today. Of course, there is another layer, which is language that tries to reproduce the media”, he explains, about the interactive resources he added to the book, such as excerpts in tweet format and QR codes that direct to playlists.

You are not invisible, Lázaro Ramos

Cover of You’re Not Invisible (2022)

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Lázaro Ramos is also the author of Na Minha Pele

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And several children’s booksDisclosure

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Lázaro directing Provisional MeasureDisclosure

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Lazaro Ramos

Behind the scenes of An Unforgettable YearDisclosure

Tiago Marques and Lázaro Ramos

Tiago Marques and Lázaro RamosPlayback/ Instagram

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Lázaro and Taís form one of the most talented and beloved couples in BrazilPromotion/TV Globo

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Freedom to express yourself

Lázaro says he started writing early, surrounded by insecurities. “I didn’t have the courage to show it, I didn’t think I had quality and I didn’t think it would interest anyone”, he recalls. In adult life, he decided to resort to skill to overcome unemployment: he managed to run his first written play for two years, with an audience.

“And it was a voice that already inhabited me and I didn’t know it had value. After that, I took over this place and had the courage to show people what I started to write. And it’s a very nice place, of freedom, I don’t have commitments, I don’t have a boss, schedule, thematic obligation”, highlights Lázaro.

“I write a lot for pleasure. It is one of the places that I enjoy the most today, where my heart is deposited without anyone ruling it”.

Although he has imprinted his entire identity in the Provisional Measure, Lázaro highlights the difficulty of finding partners for what he calls “strengthening a language of entertainment with relevance”.

“Because it brings the theme of the anti-racist struggle, but it is entertainment that connects beyond the activist bubble. And also communicates with her. And I think it’s important, I think it’s a victory and I think it’s the fruit of collective work. After so many years to make the film viable, it’s great to have this language proven to be recognized as successful and effective”, he says.

Meeting with Viola Davis

The actor, who received Viola Davis for dinner at his home in September this year, also spoke about the backstage of the meeting. The American actress was in the country to publicize Mulher Rei and spoke to the press about representation in cinema and how this story could not be told without Brazil.

“We really need to build this support network to publicize why it is relevant and quality cinema that we have in our country”, analyzes Lázaro. “And Viola was a toast to that”.

“The most beautiful thing is that when we go to meet an idol, we are afraid of being disappointed. And what I have to say about her is that she does not disappoint”, he concludes.