created in 1999 by the merger of two major national film festivals - the rio cine festival and the mostra banco nacional de cinema - the festival is headquartered in the heart of rio de janeiro, at the centro cultural da ação da cidadania, a huge building located near the docks.

jurors at the festival have a reputation for spotting and awarding the best and brightest in brazilian film talent in addition to featuring the cream of the worldwide festival circuit crop.

lest all that film leave a viewer famished, the festival throws a traditional brazilian feijoada on the middle saturday of its proceedings, specifically to keep all appetites whet.