Marcelo Machado is a Brazilian filmmaker, renowned for his groundbreaking work in experimental video in the 1980s, and more recently, for his captivating documentaries.
Born on June 8, 1958, in Araraquara, Marcelo Machado graduated in Architecture from the University of São Paulo (USP). In 1981, he co-founded the production company Olhar Eletrônico with former classmates Fernando Meirelles, Beto Salatini, and Paulo Morelli, a creative group that pioneered and experimented with video productions.
As a producer and director of photography, Marcelo Machado was instrumental in documenting the emergence of the "Vanguarda Paulista" movement and exploring the conflict between electricity production and ecology in Brazil through his early works, including "Música na praça" (1981) and "Eletroagentes" (1982).
In 1983, his first fictional short film, "Marly Normal" (co-directed with Fernando Meirelles),won the main prize at the 1st Festival Video Brasil. Throughout the 1980s, Marcelo Machado continued to work on various projects, including programming and production coordination for TV Gazeta and TV Cultura, as well as programming director for MTV Brasil.
He later took over the Radio and Television Department at the advertising agency DPZ, where he directed numerous campaigns and documentaries, including "No limits" and "Around the world". In 2000, Marcelo Machado left DPZ and worked alternately as a director of advertising and television programs, as well as creating video art.
In 2001, he directed the series "Brazilian Music" for the Multishow channel and the special "Drum in Braz" for MTV Brasil. His work in electronic music earned him the award for best electronic music video for "Samba Sim" in 2003.
Marcelo Machado went on to create and co-direct the feature documentary "Ginga, the soul of Brazilian football" for Bossa Nova Filmes in 2005. Since then, he has dedicated himself to feature documentaries, including "Oscar Niemeyer, the architect of invention" (2007) and "O Sarau" (2011),which explored the role of poetry in the lives of citizens in Dois Córregos.
In September 2012, Marcelo Machado launched the documentary "Tropicália", a two-year production that recovered rare images of the Tropicalist movement and featured unpublished interviews with Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, Tom Zé, and Rogério Duarte.
