The first Brazilian short co-directed by an Indigenous filmmaker to win the award, directed by Piratá Waurá and Heloisa Passos
Toronto, 2 May 2026 – The short documentary Replikka, co-directed by Indigenous filmmaker Piratá Waurá (Xingu territory) and award-winning director Heloisa Passos, has been awarded Best International Short Documentary at Hot Docs 2026, the largest documentary festival in North America and one of the most important in the world. The award makes the film eligible to compete for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject.
Replikka is the first Brazilian short co-directed by an Indigenous filmmaker to win the award — a landmark moment for Indigenous cinema on the international stage. The film is the culmination of nearly ten years of collaborative research between People’s Palace Projects / Queen Mary University of London, Factum Foundation, anthropologists, archaeologists and the Wauja people, centred on the preservation of their sacred cave, the Kamukuwaká. Replikka is a collective work by Indigenous and non-Indigenous filmmakers, produced with 1504 (USA), People’s Palace Projects (UK), Máquina Filmes (Paraná), Associação Indígena Ulupuwene (Mato Grosso), Fenda Filmes and Performance Filmes (São Paulo).
Memory, Cosmology and Resistance
Replikka follows the inauguration ritual of a full-scale replica of the sacred Kamukuwaká cave, vandalised in 2018 — the most important cultural heritage site of the Xingu peoples, listed by IPHAN, Brazil’s national heritage institute. The replica was created from a three-dimensional scan of the original engravings, bringing together cutting-edge technology and ancestral Xinguano wisdom.
Synopsis
On the borders of the Xingu Indigenous Territory in Brazil, a sacred cave is vandalised, threatening the collective memory of the Xingu peoples. Replikka is a meditation on memory, identity, loss and rebirth, as a full-scale replica of the cave is conceived, produced and installed in the Ulupuwene village to pass knowledge on to a new generation. The film invites us to reflect on the ancestral wisdom of the Wauja people and how technology and Indigenous knowledge can come together as an act of resistance. Directed by Piratá Waurá (Xingu Territory) and Heloisa Passos (São Paulo), the film is built from ritual and dream, spoken entirely in the Indigenous language Aruak, and made with the support of young people from the village.
Voices from the Film
“The replica is an act of resistance to preserve our history, culture and cosmology for future generations.”
— Akari Waurá, chief of the Topepeweke village
“This award belongs to the Wauja people and to all those who believed that technology and ancestral memory could walk together.”
— Heloisa Passos, director
“Hot Docs recognises not only our work, but our people’s struggle for memory and the demarcation of our lands.”
— Piratá Waurá, director
Festival Journey
Awards and official selections
Best Direction & Best Sound Editing — Festival de Brasília, Brazil (Sept. 2025)
Official Selection Première Brasil — Festival do Rio, Brazil (Oct. 2025)
Canal Brasil Best Short Film Award — Panorama Coisa de Cinema, Brazil (Mar. 2026)
Honourable Mention Best Ibero-American Short — FICG, Guadalajara, Mexico (Apr. 2026)
Best International Short Documentary — Hot Docs, Toronto, Canada (May 2026)
Upcoming screenings
As Amazonas do Cinema — Belém, Brazil (May 2026)
Nominated for ABC Best Cinematography in Short Film — Brazil (May 2026)
Brazilian Film Season, British Film Institute – Southbank — London (Jun. 2026)
Festival Guarnacê de Cinema — São Luís, Brazil (Jul. 2026)
Credits
Title: Replikka (16’) | Language: Aruak (subtitles in PT, EN, FR, ES)
Directors: Piratá Waurá and Heloisa Passos
Producers: Heloisa Passos, Mark Slagle, Yula Rocha | Executive Producers: Mark Slagle, Andrea Lanzoni
Production: Associação Indígena Ulupuwene, People’s Palace Projects / Queen Mary University of London, 1504, Máquina Filmes
Premières: World Première: Festival de Brasília 2025 | North American Première: Hot Docs 2026
Watch the short trailer