Brazilian cinematographer Adolpho Veloso won the award for Best Photography at the 2026 Critics Choice Awards for his work on the feature film “Sonhos de Trem”, available on Netflix. In an interview with CNN Brazilhe shared details about the work that impressed voters and celebrated a historic moment for national cinema.
Brazil had great prominence in the awards, which also . For Veloso, who spoke directly from Los Angeles, the difference in his work was the naturalistic approach adopted in the film’s photography.
“Using natural light throughout the film contributed to the narrative, for people to be able to connect with the film,” he explained.
The Brazilian way of making cinema
According to Adolpho, American cinema is accustomed to large-scale productions, while Brazilian work stands out for its creativity and alternative solutions.
“As this is a very industrialized system for making cinema, where people are very used to doing everything in the same way every time and following certain rules, this often makes a little more creativity impossible”, he analyzed.
He highlighted that the film’s director, Clint Bentley (“Sing Sing”), jokes that the only word he learned in Portuguese was “gambiarra”, a term that well represents the Brazilian creative approach.
“I think that having our way of ‘let’s find a way here, let’s do it differently, let’s think of another solution’ delights them a lot”, commented Veloso about the international receptivity to the Brazilian working method.
International recognition and expectations
Regarding the current moment in Brazilian cinema, Veloso believes that the recognition he deserves is finally arriving.
“Brazilian cinema is experiencing an incredible moment. Finally I think they are opening our eyes to something that we have always had. Recognition comes late, in fact, for the amount of talent we have”, he stated.
As for expectations for the Oscars, whose nominees will be announced on the 22nd, Adolpho prefers to keep his feet on the ground: “I try not to have too many expectations, because we never know what’s going to happen. When you’re making the film, it’s the last thing you imagine.”
For him, the most important thing is that the work is being seen and appreciated. “Brazil gains from visibility and world cinema gains from our productions“, he concluded.
