Manda Bala (Send a Bullet) (2007)

Director:

Jason Kohn

Release Date:

19 April 2009 (Greece)

Genre:

Documentary

Tagline:

When the rich steal from the poor... the poor steal the rich

Plot:

An examination of corruption and class warfare in Brazil as told through the stories of a wealthy businessman, a plastic surgeon who assists kidnapping victims and a politician whose income relies on a frog farm.

Plot Keywords:

Corruption | Frog | Politician | Frog Farm | Brazil

Awards:

4 wins

Directed by
Jason Kohn

Produced by
Julio DePietro	....	executive producer
Joey Frank	....	producer
Jared Goldman	....	producer
Jason Kohn	....	producer

Original Music by
Force Theory
Michael Furjanic
Neill Sanford Livingston

Cinematography by
Heloísa Passos

Film Editing by
Doug Abel
Jenny Golden
Andy Grieve

Production Management
Jair Neto	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Joey Frank	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Coll Anderson	....	supervising sound editor
Gabriela Cunha	....	sound mixer
Nelson Ferreira	....	sound editor
Sean Garnhart	....	sound editor
James Nichols	....	stereo sound consultant: Dolby
Matt Snedecor	....	assistant sound editor
Michael Suarez	....	sound technician

Visual Effects by
John Dowdell	....	2K digital intermediate colorist
Lloyd Forcellini	....	2k digital intermediate editor
Peter Heady	....	2k digital intermediate editor
Nuncle	....	title design

Camera and Electrical Department
Silvia Gangemi	....	assistant camera
Yugo Nakamura	....	assistant video engineer

Editorial Department
Jean Lane	....	digital intermediate producer
Robyn Semien	....	assistant editor
Tim Spitzer	....	digital intermediate supervisor
Mike Trinker	....	digital intermediate editor

Other crew
Erin Heidenreich	....	sales agent
Cory Monden	....	senior engineer
Dana O'Keefe	....	sales agent
Nathan Liebold	....	technical operations (uncredited)

Thanks
Thomas Doherty	....	thanks
Emilia Mello	....	special thanks

Production Companies

• Kilo Films
• Whitest Pouring Films

Distributors

• City Lights Pictures (2007) (Canada) (theatrical)
• City Lights Pictures (2007) (USA) (theatrical)
• Bir Film (2008) (Turkey) (video)
• CLMC Multimedia (2008) (Portugal) (all media)
• Canal Satelite Digital (2007) (Spain) (video)
• Creative Networks International (2008) (Italy) (TV)
• EYZ Media (2008) (Germany) (all media)
• Eesti Rahvusringhääling (2008) (Estonia) (TV)
• Femeway (2008) (Greece) (all media)
• Madman Entertainment (2007) (Australia) (all media)
• Madman Entertainment (2007) (New Zealand) (all media)
• Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK) (2008) (Norway) (TV)
• SPI International (2008) (Hungary) (all media)
• SPI International (2008) (Poland) (all media)
• SPI International (2008) (Slovakia) (all media)
• SPI International (2008) (Serbia) (all media)
• Sundance Channel (2007) (USA) (TV)
• Sveriges Television (SVT), Malmö (2008) (Sweden) (TV)
• VVS Films (2007) (Canada) (DVD)
• Videovision Entertainment (2008) (South Africa) (all media)
• Yes-DBD Satellite Services (2009) (Israel) (TV)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (2008) (Finland) (TV)

Other Companies

• Goldcrest Post Production New York  post-production
• Nuncle  design and animation

Also Known As:

Runtime:

USA:85 min (Sundance Film Festival)

Country:

Brazil | USA

Language:

English | Portuguese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.69 : 1

Certification:

USA:Unrated | Australia:MA

Filming Locations:

Brasília, Distrito Federal, Brazil

Company:

Kilo Films

Trivia:

The filmmakers struggled to find a kidnapper to film after the bribes to get into the prison where their preferred interviewee was staying proved too steep. The driver of a cab they used one day delivered "packages" on the side for a kidnapper, and introduced them to the masked man interviewed extensively in the film. Director Jason Kohn also was at the kidnapper's home when police stopped by and walked around the outside, the one moment of filming he said he feared for his life.

Brilliant, breathtaking film!

"Manda Bala" is everything you could want in a documentary, or in any film, for that matter! Directed in a style akin to the finer films of Errol Morris, "Manda Bala" is beautifully shot, brilliantly edited, and has a tremendous musical score. Shot in Brazil over several years, this documentary smartly examines the nature of corruption and class division in a truly engaging & entertaining way; the film is gripping from beginning to end, and has an immediacy that has world-wide relevance and resonance. The story is tightly woven, but the film still breathes in an almost perfect way, with just the right amount of tension & release. I am INCREDIBLY impressed by the amazing, dare I say artistic work that first-time director Jason Kohn has toiled to put together. Everyone-and-their-brothers-in-law-too should go see "Manda Bala", as soon as it's given wide-release, post-Sundance!