Generic formations in contemporary Latin-American crime film: aesthetics and identities

• Grant number: 23/14806-9
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate
• Start date: January 20, 2025
• End date: June 20, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Linguistics, Literature and Arts - Arts - Cinema
• Principal Investigator: Pedro Maciel Guimarães Junior
• Grantee: Luiz Felipe Rocha Baute
• Supervisor: Maite Conde
• Host Institution: Instituto de Artes (IA). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: University of Cambridge, England
• Associated to the scholarship: 21/05701-3 - Generic formations in contemporary Latin-American crime film, BP.DR

Abstract

This project advances the expected contributions from a research internship at the University of Cambridge connected to the PhD research I am conducting in Brazil (FAPESP 21/05701-3). Such research aims to study the production, distribution, and reception of crime films in Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico, from the perspective of the world-systems analysis, which divides global production into core, semi-periphery, and periphery, since the year 2000 to the contemporary. The referred world-systems perspective, formulated by Immanuel Wallerstein, and applied to the arts by Franco Moretti, will be used to identify the relations between the Latin-American periphery and the Hollywood core. I argue that generic processes can be better understood as part of an ample phenomenon, considering them as cultural forms in constant transformation. In this internship, I will investigate crime-related works from the selected countries, analysing their themes and aesthetics, as well as relating them to the conventions of the genre. For that, I will also use the methodology of Cultural Materialism, especially the concept of 'selective tradition' - as developed by Raymond Williams, alongside studies dedicated to Latin American cinema (PAGE, 2011; AMANCIO, 2014; CONDE, SHAW, 2018). Throughout the scrutiny of specific Latin American crime films, the artistic and social impacts of this genre in the contemporary productive and cultural processes will also be discussed. The use of the Centre of Latin American Studies facilities and resources, assisted by Professor Maite Conde's expertise, will undoubtedly strengthen my analysis, and broaden my understanding of Latin American cinema.