the documentary tells in parallel two stories, the phenomenal story of this young underprivileged boy who easily may have been swallowed up by a life of drugs and violence, but rather succeeds in using his talent to rise out of a world of poverty, and that of a modern day brazil which has also struggled with an unstable and challenging history but which shows triumph and hope in overcoming its obstacles - more information is available on seu jorge's official website on this page.

favela rising (2005) documents the real-life story of anderson sá, a resident of one of rio de janeiro's most notorious slums vigário geral, who finds himself faced with the choice to continue along the well-trodden road of drug trafficking and gang warfare, or to find some alternative.