My Name Is Daniel

Daniel Gonçalves didn’t learn to walk until he was six. It takes him an exasperating length of time to make an omelet, as he demonstrates. When after several attempts he still fails to light the gas, laughing, he drops out of his role and shouts, "Cut!" In this disarming and personal documentary, Gonçalves explores precisely what it is that is wrong with him. His physical disability is obvious, but doctors have never managed to provide a diagnosis. As he undergoes a series of tests, he paints a picture of his life today and looks back over his past, assisted by a vast collection of VHS videos, for which he sometimes provides commentary to explain the context. We see him growing up in a close family, with a loving mother who constantly balances between protecting him and giving him enough space. It was an approach that helped him make great achievements. Finally, the filmmaker poses an interesting question: what story would he have been telling if he hadn't been a white, heterosexual man from one of Rio de Janeiro’s richest neighborhoods? (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)