Brazilian film star opens up about why it's a "scary" time in the country for the LGBTQ community

After premiering at the Venice Film Festival last year and becoming Brazil’s official pick for the Best International Feature Film Oscar, the celebrated drama Private Desert finally hits U.S. theaters this weekend.

In advance of Aly Muritiba’s film’s stateside release, nonbinary actor Pedro Fasanaro sat down for a fascinating interview with GayCitiesNews about their debut film role and the importance of LGBTQ representation in Brazil at a time when it’s more dangerous to be queer there than ever.

Private Desert carefully—and crucially—shifts itself between two perspectives. First, there’s Daniel (Antonio Saboia), a man at the end of his rope who is investing a lot of time and energy in his strictly online relationship with a woman named Sara. But when Sara “ghosts” him out of the blue, Daniel decides to leave everything behind and drive hundreds of miles across Brazil to find her.

The film’s trailer gives this away, so it’s not too much of a spoiler to say that, at this point, we meet “Sara” and learn that she lives her days as a man Robson—played wonderfully by Fasanaro. Though the film resists labels, we learn that Sara is a facet of Robson’s gender experimentation, and Daniel’s arrival threatens to upset the delicate balance of her life.

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