The Night and the Days of Miguel Burnier – Films

A noite e os dias de Miguel Burnier

João Dumans
Brazil | 2026 | 82 min
World premiere
Language : Portuguese
Subtitles : English, French

In Miguel Burnier, a small, deserted town in Minas Gerais, Brazil, a few remaining inhabitants have been trying since 2005 to survive the purchase of their land by a mining giant. Tormented by unemployment, isolation and alcoholism, theytry their best to keep their community together and to breathe new life into this village where the world seems to have collapsed.

In Miguel Burnier, a small, deserted locality in Minas Gerais, a few remaining residents try to survive the arrival in 2005 of a giant in the mining industry. After the purchase of nearly all of the village’s land and the subsequent departure of almost 90% of its inhabitants, the landscape is reduced to a few soulless streets, a more than century-old railway station recalling the glory of the pioneering railway frontiers, abandoned houses and the immense iron ore extraction site whose gates remain closed to the local workforce. Tormented by unemployment, isolation and alcoholism, the survivors of this territorial takeover attempt to revive what remains of the past glory of this place of which they were once proud. Over six years, João Dumans and his team filmed the daily life of this community of the left behind – their joys and sorrows, tears and karaoke nights – in this complex territory where some of the world’s most violent economic and social contradictions converge.

Aurélien Marsais

The Night and the Days of Miguel Burnier, 2026
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