CinemaLuiz Bertazzo, from ‘I’m Still Here’, explains the construction of the film’s villain: ‘between violence and kindness’

The entry of Luiz Bertazzo on the scene marks a turning point in I’m Still Here. It is from the arrival of Schneider, the actor’s grim character, that the Paiva’s solar story begins to be accompanied by the shadow of the dictatorship that takes away, from one moment to the next, the figure of Rubens Paiva (Selton Mello) scene. The moment is not violent in itself, but rather subtle, which fulfills the role of impressing the subtle horror of the violence that Walter Salles portrays in the film inspired by the real story of the family of Marcelo Rubens Paivaauthor of the book that gave rise to the story.

“The horror had to be precisely in the feeling of danger due to what was not explicit, this is another of the torture mechanisms used by the agents of the dictatorship: ‘the lack of answers’”, says Bertazzo in an interview with Rolling Stone Brazil.

Bertazzo was tasked with representing the film’s invisible enemy – for which he had a clear vision from director Walter Salles, preparing the film’s cast. Amanda Gabriel and the exchange on stage with Fernanda Torreswhich interprets Eunice PaivaMarcelo’s mother and Rubens’ wife, who is left without answers after her husband’s disappearance (taken for interrogation under torture, and ultimately for his murder on the occasion portrayed in the film).

“Eunice’s gaze always returned to Schneider; a suspicious look, searching for answers, protecting the child, the home. This helped with the tension; There was no room to waver without the other person noticing, and my game strategy was that Schneider couldn’t give away what was happening”, says the actor.

As the time for nominations for the Oscars 2025hopes are growing for the indication of I’m Still Here for the award. Fernanda Torres’ victory as Best Dramatic Actress in Golden Globe at the beginning of January gives good hope to those who are rooting for the film. For Bertazzo, success is a window of opportunity to bring the public’s gaze closer to the horrors of a time, like his character, that was obscure in Brazilian history.

“When we tell the story of Eunice Paiva, the victims of the dictatorship and other authoritarian governments gain names, family, and the risk ceases to be impersonal, and much less distant.”

Read the full interview:

Rolling Stone Brazil: In I’m Still Here You play Schneider, the dictatorship agent who occupies the Paiva house when Rubens (Selton Mello) is taken. How was the preparation to play the character?

Luiz Bertazzo: Schneider existed, according to Marcelo Rubens Paiva himself in the book that gave rise to the film, but we don’t know who he is. What draws attention is the way the soldiers are portrayed in the author’s memory: they are extremely gentle inside the house they invaded. And it was in this contradiction between violence and kindness that I created the dark and secret figure. If the military were done in a violent and brutal way, it could alienate the viewer, make it a cliché, an allegory of violence. The closer they were to everyday life in that house, the more dangerous they would seem. I came to review the Christoph Waltz like the Nazi colonel in Inglourious Basterdsto have somewhere to point the compass, and then I tried to find the shape of a subject who could be a neighbor, a family member, someone close, lurking.

Rolling Stone Brasil: Schneider is perhaps the most striking face of this invisible enemy in the film, which is the Brazilian military dictatorship – yet his interpretation is subtle. How to build a villain without the classic villainous traits?

Luiz Bertazzo: The horror had to be precisely in the feeling of danger due to what was not explicit, this is another of the torture mechanisms used by the agents of the dictatorship: “the lack of answers”. Much for the provocations of Amanda Gabrielcasting preparer, I understood that Schneider happened in the “between”, in what is not in the lines, in the tension of the figure walking through the shadows of that house, the situation in itself was terrifying. We built a character outline that, the less villainous, the more apparent the violent comments in the scene would be.

Rolling Stone Brasil: Do you remember how Walter Salles helped you build the character?

Luiz Bertazzo: Walter had a very specific idea about this scene in the house. When we rehearsed, for the first time, the curtains closing, I understood the feeling of destruction of that home, of that dream of Brazil, which was also his dream, as Walter frequented the house in his youth, he was friends with one of the daughters. On the same rehearsal day, earlier, I had the chance to watch the family creating the ice cream shop scene, and it was important for my construction of Schneider, as the cruelty of what would come later with my character’s entry became clear. Furthermore, Walter defended the idea of ​​“subtraction” in acting; there was no need to do anything. The rehearsals taught us the story of Eunice Paiva (Fernanda Torres). In “action”, our job was to tell it.

Rolling Stone Brasil: Much of your character’s impact comes from your relationship with Fernanda Torres’ Eunice. What was it like working with her and how did she help you build this almost palpable tension on stage?

Luiz Bertazzo: Fernanda Torres and I, as the characters, looked at each other the entire time in the scene, there was a lot of play and complicity between actors behind the narrative of the scene. Even when one of the daughters came in from the street or when Rubens got into the car for the last time, Eunice’s gaze always returned to Schneider; a suspicious look, looking for answers, protecting the baby, the home. This helped with the tension; There was no room to waver without the other person noticing, and my game strategy was that Schneider couldn’t give away what was happening.

Rolling Stone Brasil: With the success of the film in Brazil, but also abroad, your role ends up being responsible for illustrating the impact of the military dictatorship on the domestic lives of people of a generation. How do you feel the film portrays this, for those who know the story and for those who are just learning about it?

Luiz Bertazzo: The impact of the dictatorship has spanned generations; Those responsible for Rubens Paiva’s death went unpunished, as did the thought he represents. I’m Still Here premieres in Brazil at a time when a coup plot is uncovered that put democracy at risk. The film evokes a memory to speak of now, of a thought guided by violence, by hate speech, which is universal. The extreme right has been strengthening itself and gaining new followers with each new cycle of choosing country representatives and I feel that this is also why the film has so much international support, the film premiered at the Venice Festival, and Italy today lives with a government with these characteristics of oppression. When we tell the story of Eunice Paiva, the victims of the dictatorship and other authoritarian governments gain names, families, and the risk ceases to be impersonal, and much less distant. He can knock on the door at any moment and snatch a loved one away from you.