[5] In 1908, during a period coined Brazil's "golden age" of Cinema, the country saw its first widely popular film, titled Os Estranguladores, by Antonio Leal.

During this belle époque of Brazilian cinema, when black and white silent films were less costly to produce, most work resulted from the effort of passionate individuals willing to take on the task themselves rather than commercial enterprises.

At the end of World War One, silent Brazilian cinema moved to the growing expansion of women and their social class, mainly the middle, and shows their modernization and diversification.

Hollywood influenced the idea of women becoming more seductive in Brazilian cinema as well with new types of hairstyles, smoking cigarettes, and looking "exotic", in terms of appearance.

[8] Fan magazines like Cinearte and A Scena Muda were published during this time, featuring both domestic and Hollywood films and stars.

Today, the telenovela, especially the "novela das sete" (a nickname given to soap operas produced by the Rede Globo channel aired around seven p.m. Mondays through Saturdays) is sometimes identified as carrying on the spirit of the chanchada.

The Companhia Cinematográfica Vera Cruz was a production company founded in the state of São Paulo during the forties and most notable for its output during the following decade.

However, despite O Cangaceiro, which was clearly inspired by western genre, the essence of these films followed the Italian cinema's style, popular between São Paulo's cultural elite in that time.

Other key directors of the movement include Nelson Pereira dos Santos, Ruy Guerra, Leon Hirszman, and Carlos Diegues.

Freedom to express political views becomes scarce as the 1964 Brazilian military regime takes place and repression increases over the following years, forcing many of these artists with a marxist or communist bent into exile.

In 1968, Rogério Sganzerla releases O Bandido da Luz Vermelha, a story based on an infamous criminal of the period.

The following year Júlio Bressane's Killed the Family and Went to the Movies (Matou a família e foi ao cinema) came out, a story in which the protagonist does exactly what is described by the title.

Also popular was Zé do Caixão, the screen alter ego of actor and horror film director José Mojica Marins.

It was criticized for its dubious selection criteria, bureaucracy and favouritism, and was seen as a form of government control over artistic production.

The early nineties, under the Fernando Collor government, saw a significant decrease in State funding that lead to a practical halt in film production and the closing of Embrafilme in 1989.

Documentaries have also had a strong place in Brazilian cinema thanks to the work of renowned directors such as Eduardo Coutinho and João Moreira Salles.

In the early 1990s Brazilian film production suffered as a result of the president Fernando Collor's laissez-faire policy; the sector had depended on state sponsorship and protection.

A common criticism is that, through this system, though films are no longer directly controlled by state, they are, nevertheless, subject to the approval of entrepreneurs who are logically cautious as to which content they wish to associate their brands.