PRISON BEAUTY CONTEST
DIRECTOR
Srdjan Sarenac
SHOWTIME
September 28 @ 3:30PM
TYPE
Documentary
THEATRE
Emerson Paramount Center
RUNNING TIME
80 minutes
LANGUAGES
Portuguese with English Subtitles
COUNTRY
Brazil/Bosnia
RELEASE DATE
2024
Pirajuí is a small city of 25,000 people with three prisons, each holding 1,500 inmates. Most of the women in Pirajuí’s prison are there for drug-related crimes – some for money, others for love, helping their boyfriends or husbands.
Graziella Fernanda Costa (45), the prison director, decides to restore the inmates’ self-esteem by organizing a beauty contest. For four weeks, women behind bars get a chance to transform from poor Cinderella to proud princess, breaking the monotony of prison life.
The beauty contest becomes a quiet rebellion against the prison uniform — offering pride, purpose, and hope. The story follows three contestants: Joyce (Miss Spring), Angel (Mister, transgender category), and Sueli (Miss Plus Size).
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Virtual Q&A with the director
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Festivals
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Mediterranean Film Festival 2024 (Winner, Grand Prix and Audience Award)
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Beldocs International Documentary Film Festival 2024 (Official Selection)
preceded by
LA MANCHA NEGRA
Directed by Yareni Velázquez Mendoza
Animation, 5 mins, Mexico, 2024​
Recounts the transformation of Marlene, a woman who once embraced darkness as a true expression of herself and soul. However, the adversities she faced in life have allowed her to grant new meaning to that darkness.