The Surge

Diamantina Mountains, Brazil, 1821. On coming back to the imposing but decadent farmhouse he received as dowry for marrying the heiress of a diamond baron, ANTONIO, a drover, finds out that his wife died in labor. Forced to live in this desolate property in the company of his demented mother-in-law and numerous slaves, he marries his dead wife’s young niece, a child of 12. A restless soul, he returns to his expeditions trading slaves and cattle, and leaves the child wife behind. The loneliness of the big house in the rugged landscape mirrors that of its inhabitants. Each one has been displaced from his original home and forced into co-existence. The undercurrents of violence and prejudice, which still plague the Brazil of today, fuel the impending tragedy which, in turn, is an ambiguous announcement of the winds of change.