Deputies of the Legislative Assembly of the State of São Paulo (Alesp) determined transfers of R$700,000 from public coffers to companies managed by Karina Ferreira da Gama, partner of the production company responsible for the film “Dark Horse”, a biopic of former president Jair Bolsonaro. The nominations came from three Bolsonaro parliamentarians and one PT member, who deny irregularities.
Of the amount, R$300,000 was actually paid, according to data from the Transparency Portal. The information was revealed by the Metrópoles website and confirmed by GLOBO.
The financing of the feature film is the subject of an investigation by the Federal Police. Last week, the website “Intercept Brasil” released audios in which senator and presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro (PL) demanded payments from the owner of Banco Master, Daniel Vorcaro. At least R$61 million was sent by a business he controlled to an American fund.
The amendments from the São Paulo deputies were destined for two of Karina’s companies, called Instituto conhecimento Brasil and Associação Nacional de Cultura. Both are headquartered in a commercial complex on Avenida Paulista, in São Paulo, according to CNPJ records.
In 2023, deputy Valéria Bolsonaro (PL), former state secretary for Women’s Policies, sent R$100,000 to the institute for the purpose of “acquiring equipment”. The amendment, which is mandatory, was sent on December 28 of that year, at the deadline for payment. The parliamentarian’s advisor was contacted to explain the measure, but has not yet returned contact.
Two years later, two other Bolsonaro deputies opted, at least initially, for transfers to companies linked to Karina.
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Lucas Bove (PL) indicated R$213 thousand for the same CNPJ, this time for a sports project. The amendment, however, was “technically prevented” and ended up not being implemented. The term refers to some failure in the process, which may involve failure to meet deadlines, absence of a project, failed documentation or withdrawal, for example.
“I received a project focused on children’s sports that seemed interesting, but I redirected the resource due to the proponent’s documentary issues. The institute did not present the technical documentation for execution, so I decided to redirect it to another project”, claimed the deputy in messages.
Gil Diniz (PL), known by the nickname “Carteiro Reaça” and close to Eduardo Bolsonaro, allocated R$200,000 to the National Culture Association, under the justification of financing the production of the documentary series “Heróis Nacionais — Filhos do Brasil que não surrender”. The amount was paid in August 2025. Diniz did not return contact.
This year, PT deputy Luiz Fernando Teixeira, a name close to the Minister of Labor, Luiz Marinho, filed an amendment imposing R$190,000 for Karina’s institute, for “cultural projects”. He stated, in a note, that it will be “used solely and exclusively for a theater class project in São Bernardo do Campo, at the request of a theater group”. The parliamentarian declared that he has supported the culture sector since 2015, when he took office.
Federal amendments under scrutiny
Recently, Federal Supreme Court (STF) minister Flávio Dino demanded explanations from PL federal deputies due to amendments addressed to the companies Instituto conhecimento Brasil and Academia Nacional de Cultura, controlled by the partner of the “Dark Horse” producer. The investigation is preliminary and focuses on possible non-compliance with a previous Court decision that determined transparency and traceability of the so-called “Pix amendments”, in addition to a possible hidden redirection to Bolsonaro’s film.
One of the deputies involved is former actor Mário Frias (PL), who is part of the cast of “Dark Horse” and wrote the film’s script. He sent R$ 2 million to the Instituto Saber Brasil through two amendments: one of them was aimed at training adults and teenagers in “digital literacy” for digital teaching to 4th and 5th year students in municipal public schools, and the other for implementing the martial arts project “Fighting for Life” in São Paulo.
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A report on the website “UOL” also found that Alexandre Ramagem (PL-RJ) and Carla Zambelli (PL-SP) sent R$ 1 million each to the government of São Paulo, through special transfers, a mechanism that became known as “Pix amendments” and does not allow checking the final destination without carrying out a complex data cross-reference. In this case, it was for the National Academy of Culture, under the justification of financing the production “Heróis Nacionais”. Marcos Pollon (PL-MS) supplemented with R$500 thousand, and Bia Kicis (PL-DF), with another R$150 thousand.
