erōtikós — trailer

English subtitles are available — please turn on CC in the player.

In Greek mythology, Ananke is the goddess of necessity, constraints, and limits. To counterbalance her dominion, Eros is born — the god of love and desire. erōtikós is a documentary that delves into this fundamental tension to investigate what remains of eroticism in a society shaped by control, religious guilt, and colonial logic.

Weaving in-depth interviews with provocative artistic performances, the film breaks away from the binary vision that separates body and soul, human and animal. From psychoanalysts to sex workers, from philosophers to body artists, the documentary navigates taboo subjects such as sexuality in old age, the desexualization of motherhood, Christian guilt, and new affective configurations beyond monogamy.

Featuring thinkers such as Geni Núñez, Alexandre Coimbra Amaral, Renato Noguera, and Viviane Mosé, erōtikós gains important layers through the musical direction of Lenna Bahule, the cinematography of Guta Galli, and the intertwining artworks of artists like Gal Oppido, Catarina Gushiken, Estela Lapponi, and Moisés Patrício.

The film proposes that eroticism is, above all, a form of knowledge and a political tool. If the system falls ill by repressing the drive, healing comes through the recognition that we are nature, flaw, and excess. The documentary is an invitation to transform judgment into curiosity, recognizing the body as the first territory to be decolonized.

Credits
Conception, direction & production: Maíra Scombatti
Screenplay: Lara Aufranc & Maíra Scombatti
Director of photography: Guta Galli
Musical direction: Lenna Bahule
Editing: Lara Aufranc
Co-production: Espelho Filmes
Production & post-production assistance: Daiane Calisto, Rizzi Tani & Alana Ortiz
Sound editing: Mariana Leão & Guilherme Lima Assis
Trailer: Rodrigo Kassab
Interviewees: Abhiyana, Alexandre Coimbra Amaral, Catarina Gushiken, Céu Cavalcanti, Gal Oppido, Geni Núñez, Janaína Leite, Lenna Bahule, Maíra Scombatti, Pedro Ambra, Renato Noguera & Viviane Mosé.
Artists, performers & directors with work in the visual montage: Carmen Faustino, Catarina Gushiken & Gal Oppido, Dora Selva & Louise Botkay, Denisse Ariana Pérez, Estela Lapponi, Fabiana Wolf, Flavia Pinheiro, Francisco Sendino, Guta Galli, Indra Haretrava, Janaína Leite, Jessica Fertonani Cooke, Lara Aufranc, Leticia Sekito, Lenna Bahule, Lucas Dupin, Moisés Patrício, Paula Sacchetta & Renan Flumian, Rob Woodcox & Sol Casal.