Thiago Zanato is a Brazilian filmmaker living in Los Angeles, California. Born in a family of Italian immigrants in Brazil and having migrated to the US himself, his work is focused on the search for belonging and the enriching clash between cultures.
Thiago started as a creative director working at high-profile advertising agencies, creating campaigns for clients such as Nike, Xbox, Absolut Vodka, Samsung and many others. His passion for film has led him to work as a creative director on film projects such as "I'm Here" (Sundance, 2010), directed by Spike Jonze and "NY-Z", featuring Jay-Z. In 2013 he started Black Magic, a production company operating in New York and São Paulo where he directed commercial projects for clients like Sony, Fiat, Mastercard and TED Global.
In 2017 he also started working on auteurial documentaries and narrative fiction. In 2018 he directed the short film “La Flaca” a film about immigration and faith as an act of resistance, about a Mexican transgender woman and leader of the Santa Muerte (Saint Death) cult in Queens, NY. The film was highly acclaimed and entered over 100 film festivals around the world, among them: OutFest, Frameline, LALIFF, New Orleans Film Festival, Fribourg International Film Festival, Encounters Film Festival, Message to Man, Festival de la Habana, Guanajuato International Film Festival and many others.
In 2022 he premiered “Esu and the Universe”, shot in Brazil, Nigeria, Spain and Slovenia, the film is a documentary about the decolonization of thought and the demonization of African-based religions in Brazil and around the world. The film won the Best Documentary Jury Award at the São Paulo International Film Festival and Best Documentary Audience Award at the Rio De Janeiro International Film Festival. The project was also selected to the Points North Fellowship, Latino Media Market - NALIP Media Summit, WIP latino at FICG in LA, DOCNYC and DOCSP. Thiago is currently directing commercial projects and music videos with a focus on American and Latin artists, and developing a film about Arely Vazquez and the Santa Muerte community in Queens, NY - a narrative feature to be produced between Mexico and the US.
Thiago’s goal is to challenge current forms of representation in film and entertainment by telling unheard stories from often unseen characters - and ultimately help to deconstruct and decolonize the way we think.
Film Awards:
Best Documentary Audience Award at the 49th São Paulo International Film Festival (2022)
Best Documentary Jury Award at the Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival (2022)
Best Documentary Short Film - Tacoma Film Festival. U.S. (2019)
Best Documentary Short Film - Seattle Latino Film Festival. U.S. (2019)
Best Documentary Short Film & Best Short Film - FESAALP Festival de Cine Latinoamericano de La Plata. Argentina (2019)
Best International Short Film. Espacio Queer. Argentina (2019)
Best Short Award, "Guerrilla" Section - AMOR LGBT+ International Film Festival. Chile (2019)
Best Short Film, VICE en Español Award - Programa de Diversidad Sexual + FICM Morelia. Mexico (2018)
Film Selections & Fellowships:
2020 Points North Fellow
2020 NALIP Media Market Fellow
43rd Frameline San Francisco International Film Festival
37th OutFest Film Festival
18th LALIFF Los Angeles Latino Film Festival
29th New Orleans Film Festival
35th Kasseler Dokfest
32nd Fribourg International Film Festival (Switzerland)
28th Message to Man (Russia)
40th Havana Film Festival (Cuba)
21st Guanajuato International Film Festival (Mexico)
28th Inside Out Toronto LGBT Film Festival (Canada)
and many others.
Advertising Awards:
9 Cannes Lions ;
Cannes Young Lions Winner ;
6 Pencils in One Show ;
4 Clio Awards ;
1 Grand Prix and 3 Golds in the London International Advertising Awards.
Sundance Film Festival - Opening Night