THE AFRO-BRAZILIAN AFFAIR

SBT, Brazil's second-largest television station known notably for success with kids' telenovelas, some which have aired here in Kenya such as Carousel and Friends to the Rescue on Citizen TV, have decided to postpone any filming of telenovelas.

Their last telenovela, The Adventures of Poliana (As Aventuras de Poliana) whose filming was over in December 2019, was to return for a brand new season in January titled Poliana Moça and was scheduled to begin in 2021, a little while over the resumption of filming, but unfortunately, that shall not be so.

SBT is expected to release an official statement concerning the issue. The actors' contracts are not going to renewed and will expire on October 31st. This move was made mostly due to the fact that unlike Globo and Record that have managed to resume filming of their pending telenovelas, SBT's casts are made up of mainly children and some old actors, who are the greatest risk targets for the COVID-19 virus. As such, putting these two risk groups in harms' way is not good business for the broadcaster.

Now Generation (Geração Brasil) is a 2014 Brazilian telenovela produced by Globo. It stars  Murilo Benício, Cláudia Abreu, Isabelle Drummond, Luís Carlos Miele, Luís Miranda, Lázaro Ramos, Renata Sorrah, Taís Araújo, Humberto Carrão and Chandelly Braz. 

It is written by Filipe Miguez and Isabel de Oliveira, responsible for the Sparkling Girls fame.

The telenovela revolves around Jonas Marra, who is married to the great American star Pamela Parker. Together, they spoil young Megan, Pamela’s daughter. The couple is admired by the public and has a strong partnership that extends to business ventures. With a seemingly perfect life, Jonas surprised everyone by announcing his return to Brazil and the election of a business successor. A well-kept secret explains his return to the motherland, which influences these decisions.

The telenovela premieres tonight 03/09/2020 on Nina Novelas

You can follow our Facebook page The Afro-Brazilian Affair for regular updates.

Watch the trailer for the show below:

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Don't miss the premier of #NowGeneration tonight at 6.50 p.m. EAT on Nina Novelas #GeraçãoBrasilInglês

A post shared by The Afro-Brazilian Affair (@theafrobrazilianaffair) on Sep 3, 2020 at 6:13am PDT

Tangled Hearts (Sangue Bom) is a 2013 telenovela produced by Globo in 2013 under direction by Denis Carvalho. The telenovela was created by Maria Adelaide Amaral and Vicente Villari. It aired on Citizen TV Kenya and was covered by Nina Novelas as well for Sub-Saharan countries via Pay TV.

Isabelle Drummond (right) and Marco Pigossi (left)

The telenovela revolved around six young couples who were basically looking to love and to be loved. The show starred Sophie Charlotte, Marco Pigossi, Isabelle Drummond, Humberto Carrão, Jayme Matarazzo, and Fernanda Vasconcellos.

Since there is usually little to no information concerning the pre-production process of filming for the public, we came across some information that is interesting concerning casting and preparation for the filming of Tangled Hearts.



● Marco Pigossi and Sophie Charlotte were reserved for the roles of Bento and Amora since the novela Fina Estampa (Looks and Essence) was on air in 2011;

● Marina Ruy Barbosa (Eliza from Total Dreamer) was the first option in the production of the plot to play the tomboy Giane, but she refused to cut her red hair, being replaced by Isabelle Drummond, who promptly met the requirement;

Marina Ruy Barbosa (left) and Isabelle Drummond (right)

● Actor Jayme Matarazzo would take on the role of playboy Fabinho and actor Humberto Carrão would play Maurício. Production of the plot opted to reverse the roles at the beginning of the plot workshops;

● The first character created by the authors was Barbara Ellen. As well as in the telenovela, the actress played by Giulia Gam was the center of the universe of the premise;

● Actor Humberto Martins would play Plinio, but gave up on the novela claiming fatigue and was replaced by actor Herson Capri;

● Actor Gil Coelho (James the Just in Jesus) would play Vinny, but was outdone in the trials by Maurício Destri;

● Actor Alexandre Slaviero would play Lucindo, but was outdone in the trials by Joaquim Lopes;

● Actress Xuxa Lopes discovered suffering from panic syndrome during filming, which is why her character Bluma was reduced to luxury figure, being exchanged in the final line by the assistant portrayed by Helena Fernandes;

● Actor Edwin Luisi abandoned Rebelde's first season without giving satisfaction to Record TV and had his work at the station interrupted. Sometime later, he appeared as Uncle Lili in Tanged Hearts ;

● Actress Thaila Ayala asked for an opportunity to be in the novela from the authors via email;

● Actress Bia Arantes set aside a role as a killer in Baby Dragon to play Cléo;

● Actor Kayky Britto (Sinval from Passione) would play Tito, but was outdone by Romulo Neto in the trials;

● Actor Antonio Firmino, who played the role of Evandro in some episodes died shortly after the end of the novela.
● Before the soap opera ended, some actors were already cast for Now Generation (Geração Brasil) in 2014.

Tangled Hearts (Source: Globo)

Igor Cosso, who graced our screens as Bezalel in Moses and the Ten Commandments has produced a short film titled The Article which is available on IGTV via his Instagram profile. 

The Article Poster (Mallory Snow and Igor Cosso)

In view of the ongoing worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, Brazilian broadcasters that had telenovelas and series in productions (Globo/Record/SBT) have all held their productions on pause and ongoing shows were replaced with compact editions of backlist titles.
Igor's latest role was as Junior in Globo's Salve-se Quem Puder which was airing at the 7 p.m. slot before it went on production break as a result of the pandemic. In the same vein, the actor partnered with some acquaintances of his including budding actress Mallory Snow to produce a short film.

The film called The Article basically revolves around a WhatsApp video call between long-distance couple Lucas and Pam (played by Igor Cosso and Mallory Snow respectively) whose steamy video call goes horrific after Pam falls prey to mysterious beings. This all happens right after they are texting concerning a NASA article confirming the release of UFO videos by the Pentagon...

I finally got to watch the short film today after giving it a 6-day watch out since its release and all things considered, The Article is a well laid out short film that has managed to obey and do justice to the horror genre by effecting Mystery and Suspense in a very brilliant scope and in little time as well.

The acting was very well done with Igor and Mallory acing the role of the sex-deprived couple in quarantine and I have to highly commend Mallory's brilliance is exuded during the horrific parts of the film. The directing was well structured, from the start of the film during the introduction of the entire premise via said article and the WhatsApp call gave for very decent quality, geographical, and network limitations notwithstanding. It was also very clever how we got a taste of the subject through which the mystery revolves (Non-Human Species) without entirely revealing them to us, giving for almost perfect relaying of the suspense that concludes the short film.

The Article is a testament to the fact that art cannot be suppressed regardless of time, resources, and distance. The entire team that put its heart out to giving us this short film has done a wonderful job.

Film Credits:
Written and produced by Igor Cosso
Directed by Nattannaella Verduga
With Mallory Snow and Igor Cosso
Edited by Nattannaella Verduga
Visual Effects: Ben Petterson
Assistant Visual Effects: Nando Brandao and Rajiv Uttamchandani
Special thanks to: Erica Gibaon, Heron Leal, Diego Duarte, Nando Brandão, João Vitor Silveira, Mariana Molina, Lucas Romano, Talita Tileli and Lucas Casonatti.

Watch the entire film below:

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-> Deixe a tela do IGTV cheia. -> Assista de Luzes Apagadas -> Assista pelo celular -> Se der, assista com fones de ouvido. -> Vá até o final! O curta-metragem The Article foi gravado durante a quarentena da pandemia do Corona Vírus, de forma remota por todos que integram a equipe, filmado por chamadas de vídeo e finalizado no formato da plataforma IGTV do Instagram. Esse é um projeto independente de um artista brasileiro que tem o ofício de produzir arte como profissão em tempos tão difíceis para um momento de suspiro fora da realidade. Curta, compartilhe e divulge! Ajude nosso filme a chegar a mais pessoas! Bom filme! Igor Créditos: Escrito e produzido por Igor Cosso Dirigido por Nattannaella Verduga Com Mallory Snow e Igor Cosso Editado por Nattannaella Verduga Efeitos Visuais: Ben Petterson Efeitos Visuais ajudantes: Nando Brandao e Rajiv Uttamchandani Obrigado especial a: Erica Gibaon, Heron Leal, Diego Duarte, Nando Brandão, João Vitor Silveira, Mariana Molina, Lucas Romano, Talita Tileli e Lucas Casonatti.

A post shared by Igor Cosso (@igorcosso) on Jun 14, 2020 at 4:47pm PDT

The Promised Land (A Terra Prometida) is a 2016 Brazilian telenovela by Record TV, starring Sidney Sampaio reprising his role as Joshua from Moses and the Ten Commandments, Thais Melchior, Paloma Bernardi, and a stellar cast.

Thais Melchior (left) and Sidney Sampaio (right)

The Promised Land takes place in approximately 1200 B.C in a Hebrew camp in Shittim, in the desert of Moab. After the death of Moses, Joshua becomes the new leader of the Hebrews. Joshua is an experienced warrior, endowed with courage, determination, and a powerful faith. But it is no easy task to lead people to their destination. With his closest and trusted allies, (the Levite priest Eleazar and Caleb, who is the leader of the tribe of Judah) Joshua has to fulfill a difficult mission, one ordained by God: to command the twelve tribes of Israel and lead them in their conquest of Canaan, the Promised Land.

The Promised Land premieres on 11th January 2021 at 4.00 AM. East African Time on United Living Faith Network USA. You can follow The Afro-Brazilian Affair Facebook Page for daily updates. 

Check out the trailer here:

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The Promised Land (A Terra Prometida) begins on 15th June 2020 only on @recorduganda for the first time in East Africa 🇺🇬 #Premiere #Estreia #aterraprometidainglês #thepromisedland

A post shared by The Afro-Brazilian Affair (@theafrobrazilianaffair) on Jun 9, 2020 at 2:07pm PDT

Guilherme Winter, known for his role as Moses in Moses and the Ten Commandments (RecordTV) which aired on KTN Home, has not seen his son, the result of his relationship to Gisele Itié (Zipporah), since the beginning of the quarantine. The actor lives in Rio de Janeiro, while his ex-partner lives in São Paulo, where he has been since he discovered his pregnancy. The two broke up recently. 

Gisele Itié (left) and ex-partner Guilherme Winter (right)

"I decided to live close to my support network, my parents, and my siblings. Gui's family is also from São Paulo," reported Gisele, in an interview with the journalist Patrícia Kogut's website. The distance keeps little Pedro, who was born in March, away from his father since the first weeks of his life. 

"He is coming to live here too. He went to Rio to resolve his moving when the pandemic broke out. We are trying to understand when he is going to come here," said Gisele. 

Still in the interview, she said she was very shaken by the distance that was imposed on the relationship between father and son.

"It's worth crying over. It's a magical moment. How is it that Gui is missing this moment? Pedro is already another baby since he last saw him. We make video calls every day, but it's not the same thing ", lamented the actress."

In an Instagram post, Guilherme Winter shared a photo with his son but did not make it clear whether the post is recent or before the pandemic. "Peak of happiness", wrote the actor, in the caption. 

On Mother's Day, he also paid tribute to his ex. "His first year ... Our son is blessed and healthy. Thank you! Happy Mother's day, Gisele Itié. He couldn't have a better mother than you," he declared a week ago. Check out the actors' posts: 

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pico da felicidade ♥️😍🌱

A post shared by Guilherme A. Winter (@guiwinter) on May 14, 2020 at 1:10pm PDT

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nosso filho abençoado e com saúde. obrigado! 🙏✨ Feliz dia @gitie 🌷

A post shared by Guilherme A. Winter (@guiwinter) on May 10, 2020 at 10:17am PDT

Empire (Império) is a 2015 telenovela written by Aguinaldo Silva (Two Faces/Looks and Essence) and produced by Globo.

The telenovela won the 2015 International Emmy Award for Best Telenovela.


Empire tells the story of a powerful business mogul with a seemingly idyllic life, but drama couldn't be further from his life.

Heartbreak forever changed the fate of the young and humble José Alfredo. Years later, he became Commander Alfredo, a successful owner of a jewelry empire and a man obsessed with power. Temperamental and cunning, he tries to balance his turbulent marriage, an extramarital love affair, and the dispute between his children over succession in his business. One day, however, the unexpected appearance of a possible daughter, of whom he was unaware, causes upheaval in his life and takes his familial conflicts to a whole new level.

Empire premieres on the 15th of May, 2020 on Nina Novelas English.

Actor Felipe Simas, 27, who played Jonatas in Globo's Total Dreamer has tested positive for the Coronavirus yesterday. 

From right: Felipe Simas and his wife Mariana Uhlmann

His wife, Mariana Uhlmann was the one who confirmed it. The actor was playing the role of Téo Santamarina in Globo's current telenovela Salve-se Quem Puder, whose shooting was halted due to the current ongoing Coid-19 pandemic.

Mariana confirmed that they are taking care of their child, the youngest one, Vicente and her mother-in-law has already been with them for a week now.

She said that they have no idea how he contracted the virus and that it is not the time to think about it. What is important, she urges people, is to take care of oneself and one's family.

Last night (9/04/2020) on Record TV's 8 p.m. telenovela, Ultimate Love (Amor sem Igual) which hit its 85th episode, actress Sthefany Brito shone brighter than any other.

Sthefany Brito plays Donatela (Doutorzinha) in Amor sem Igual. Courtesy: Record TV The actress who plays the role of Donatella (nicknamed Doutorzinha) was discovered to have been a prostitute by her then boyfriend José Antonio (played by Cesar Cardadeiro) and after he reveals this news, she hesitates before revealing that it is true she has been a prostitute much to the shock of everyone who cares for her, mostly her grandfather Geovani (played by Paulo Figueiredo) In the very emotional scene, Donatela shouted, "“How do you think I pay the bills, Grandpa's medicine, his stay here? I got tired of screwing up to pay for everything and still having to turn around to hide who I really am, ” She also attributed her turn to prostitution to the fact that her school fees in medical school was very expensive, "I really wanted to be a nurse, but college is for those who can not for those who cannot. I did what I did for my grandfather and I do not regret it." Before leaving the room with everyone's mouth open, including the public, Donatella also sent one to José Antonio: You, José Antônio, are an idiot, prejudiced, intolerant! You never felt any love for me. The result of this scene has been massive praise, especially on Twitter for the actress' dramatic scene in the show. Here is the scene in its native Portuguese:

Cartola: The Samba Legend