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Favela Rising is an explosive and inspirational documentary about Rio de Janeiro's most violent favela (shantytown) and the revolutionary vision of a man who against all odds rises to enhance his community.

Haunted by the murders of his family and friends, Anderson Sa is a former drug-trafficker who turns revolutionary in Rio de Janeiro's most feared slum. Through hip-hop music, the rhythms of the street, and Afro-Brazilian dance he rallies his community to war against the violent oppression enforced by teenage drug armies and sustained by corrupt police. At the dawn of liberation, just as collective mobility is overcoming all odds and Anderson's grassroots AfroReggae movement is at the height of its success, a tragic accident threatens to silence the movement forever.

Shot over a two-year period, Matt Mochary and Jeff Zimbalist's extraordinarily powerful and life affirming film celebrates the strength of the human spirit in the face of human-rights violations, social injustice, and unexpected adversity.