Sean Penn Joins Dardenne Brothers, Walter Salles as Executive Producer on Brazil’s ‘Manas’

Sean Penn has boarded Marianna Brennand’s debut fiction feature Manas as executive producer.

Penn, a two-time Academy Award-winning actor, joins Walter Salles, last year’s best international feature Oscar winner for I’m Still Here, two-time Cannes Palme d’Or winners Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, and I’m Still Here producer Maria Carlota Bruno as executive producers on Manas, which won the 2024 best director award at Venice Days, the independent parallel section of the Venice Film Festival.

In the film, Brennand, who began her career as a documentarian, tells the story of Marcielle, a 13-year-old from Marajó Island. “Silenced in a society that ignores violence against women and children, she confronts generational wounds and takes control of her destiny, forever altering her family’s fate,” highlights a synopsis.

“In the tradition last fulfilled by Walter Salles’ I’m Still Here, Marianna Brennand’s film Manas continues Brazil’s most enduring cinematic legacy,” said Penn. “Films of striking social relevance that never fall to polemic or sensationalism, but instead so trustingly fulfill their characters’ plight and courage. Manas is deeply emotional, stirring, and God forbid… important. I felt as if I had to put my skin back on after watching it.”

Shared Brennand: “I first met Sean in Cannes, on the night I received the Women in Motion Emerging Talent Award from Kering and Cannes Film Festival, alongside Nicole Kidman. It was a pivotal evening in my career — I was deeply emotional and spoke from the heart about what it means to give voice to women and children who are so often silenced. After my speech, Sean asked to meet me. He told me he needed to know the person behind those words and to see the film that had moved so many in the audience that night.”

After watching Manas, Penn called her, said the director, “to share how profoundly shaken he was by the film.” She added: “He spoke of its cinematic and narrative power in bringing to light a story so difficult to tell, one that reflects the lived reality of countless women and children, not only in the depths of the Amazon but across the world. From that moment, he committed himself to helping raise awareness for the film, convinced it needed to reach audiences everywhere.”

Concluded Brennand: “Sean has long been an inspiration to me — not only for his work as a filmmaker, but for his courage as a social activist and humanitarian. Manas was born from a deep desire to spark empathy and inspire social and political change.”

Manas was recently acquired by KimStim for a U.S. release, while Bendita Film Sales is launching international sales in select territories at the Toronto International Film Festival. Internationally, the movie has already been released in Brazil, Belgium, France, The Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Portugal.