In 1963, Paulo Freire led a small group of educators across Northeastern Brazil in experimental “Culture Circles,” teaching 300 rural people to read and write in forty hours. Their innovative method used critical and creative thinking instead of memorization and repetition. By contextualizing and personalizing the lessons, educators used their surroundings to teach vocabulary and construct meaning – and to vote. Freire’s project opened the door for them to get ID cards for the first time and participate in the fervor of the blossoming democracy taking place in Brazil at that time. A coup d’etat in 1964 overthrew the president, shut down the program and set fire to the farmers’ notebooks. Freire was forced into exile for 16 years, spreading this pedagogy around the globe and impacting education until today.

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Paulo Freire
Paulo Freire

Crew

Directed by Catherine Murphy & Iris de Oliveira
Produced by Micaela Ovelar and Carina Aparecida
Co-producer Rachel Dickson
Executive producers Petra Costa, Kit Miller, T.M. Scruggs
Written by Luis Dechtiar, Iris de Oliveira, Renato Maia & Mara Wollong
Edited by Luis Dechtiar, Iris de Oliveira, Renato Maia & Mara Wollong
Associate producers Talaya Grimes, Miranda Montenegro, Gary Wright Jr.
Consulting producers Maria Luisa Mendonça, Catherine Gund
Creative consultant Denise Zmekhol
Cinematography Carina Aparecida, Ulisses Brandão, Cristiano Burlan, Oto Cartaxo, Caio Castor, Renato Maia, Passos Jr. Direct sound Felipe Mago Andrade, Valney Damacena, Albán Henriquez Consulting editors Lucy Phenix, Tracey Quezada, Corey Ohama
Archival producers Stephanie Temoteo & Micaela Ovelar
Impact producer  Erika Hoffgen – Vivá Projetos
Communications team Lucia Amieva-Wang, Lauren Pardo, Gabriela Luz Sierra, and Stephanie Temoteo
Music by Bia Ferreira, Chico Cesar, Claudio Rabeca and Quinteto de Paraiba
Produced by Maestra Productions and the Paulo Freire Institute in association with SESC, Bela Films, and the Swiss Consulate in São Paulo. Made possible by The Quitiplás Foundation, Orchard House Foundation, Buenas Obras Fund, the Alternative Schools Network – and many generous individuals. Impact campaign funded in part by the Puffin Foundation.

Educator Resources and Study Guide

Paulo Freire Bibliography English | By Micaela Ovelar Márquez Bibliografia de Paulo Freire Português | Por Micaela Ovelar Márquez Bibliografía de Paulo Freire Español | Por Micaela Ovelar Márquez Revista Estudos Universitarios, 1963

Paulo Freire Resources Page