DOC. late development. 90min

Directed by Mônica Santino & Carla Shah

Production 3 Tabela Filmes

Two friends embark on a journey into their past to make way for the women they want to become. As Carla begins her new life as a mother in Brasilia a city far from her friends and family, she gains comfort every afternoon rewatching the footage of Monica who builds an art piece dedicated to her family. When Monica reveals her buried memories of over 30 years, the two women show the power of friendship and how they can help each other rebuild their narratives. 

DOC. 2022. 18min

Director, Cinemagrapher, and Editor Carla Shah

Production Rohan Berry Crickmar

Executive producers Noé Mendelle, Flore Cosquer, Mark Thomas

Collaborators Mohand and Sophie rehearse their new play about Sudan. Navigating the country’s politics and culture, the unlikely pair use comedy and the joy of creativity to tell a very personal narrative about Mohand’s longing to return home and his inability to do so. As the UK government increases its hostile legislation towards refugees this film focuses attention on issues of representation and, more immediately, how we make a dream of home a reality.

Trailer

DOC. 2021. 15min

Director, Photographer and Editor Carla Shah

Produced by Edinburgh College of Arts

Nine months into the pandemic Copacabanca hangs by a thread as Carlos, the news stand owner, waits faithfully for customers who never arrive. As Carlos’s quiet surrounding becomes an observation on longing, Copacabanca in turn becomes an allegory on Brazilian democracy. This tragicomedy, a portrait of unlikely hero, is about a man who pushes on even though his business and country are failing him. While we watch Carlos wait, we begin to ask ourselves about our own condition and what it is we are waiting for.

Trailer

MUSIC. VIDEO. 2017

Directed and Edited by Carla Shah

Production Luciano Romanieli

Cinematography Luíz Gomez

Following a two-day trip in Rio de Janeiro, the music video documents the band As Bahias e Cozinha Mineiro and their life on the road. It captures the buildup to their first show at Circo Voador, a venue that has launched the careers of many artists. Since then, their album has been nominated for the Latin American Grammy. The first time in history that trans women have been nominated. The video weaves in a reflection on what it means to be a woman, and the song’s nostalgia for a love long lost.

Click here for the video

For the full Rollingstones article (Portuguese), click here 

FIC. 2016. 11min

Directed and written by Carla Shah

Produced by Luciano Romanieli / CALU Filmes / ECDR

Ícaro seeks liberation from his job as an elevator operator. Based on the Greek myth of Icarus, the film investigates the psychology of a character who is emotionally and physically stuck. Interlacing Rio's dramatic architecture with dance and music, Ícaro is a poetic film which reflects the human psyche as well as Brazil's unique social context.  

Trailer

DOC. 2014. 10min

Directed, Written and Edited Carla Shah 

Produced by Escola de Cinema Darcy Ribeiro

After 10 years of silence, a daughter begins to write a series of letters to her mother, celebrating and longing for a time they once shared. When there are few photographs to document their unity, personal references in music and cinema become the tool to reconcile the loss and grief. The documentary is based on Carla's own relationship with her mother.

Letters to Maya was made by Carla in her second semester at Escola de Cinema Darcy Ribeiro (ECDR). In 2015, it became part of the curriculum at ECDR to teach documentary and screenwriting. The short is currently being developed into a feature-length documentary.

Watch the full film here