I’m Still Here (Ainda Estou Aqui): The True Story Behind Brazil’s Oscar-Winning Film
I’m Still Here (Ainda Estou Aqui): The True Story Behind Brazil’s Oscar-Winning Film
Walter Salles’ film tells the story of the Paiva family after former congressman Rubens Paiva was detained and forcibly disappeared during Brazil’s military dictatorship. But the story goes far beyond one disappearance: it is also about Eunice Paiva, memory, family survival, Brazilian democracy, and a film that made Academy Awards history.
What Is the True Story Behind I’m Still Here?
The center of I’m Still Here is not a fictional political conspiracy. It is the real Paiva family and the forced disappearance of Rubens Beyrodt Paiva, a Brazilian civil engineer and former federal deputy.
Rubens had been elected to Brazil’s Chamber of Deputies in 1962 and took office in 1963. After the military coup of 1964, his congressional mandate was revoked. He spent a period in exile and later returned to Brazil, where he resumed family and professional life.
On January 20, 1971, armed agents entered the Paiva family home in Leblon, Rio de Janeiro. According to the investigation later conducted by Brazil’s National Truth Commission, Rubens was taken first to a military facility near Santos Dumont Airport and then to the DOI, a political-repression unit in Rio. He never returned home.
For years, the official story did not acknowledge what had happened. The National Truth Commission eventually reconstructed the case from documents and testimony and concluded that Rubens was tortured, died as a result of that torture, and that state agents participated in concealing his body. His remains have never been returned to his family.
A Short Timeline of the Paiva Family Story
Rubens Paiva is elected federal deputy for São Paulo and takes office in Brazil’s Chamber of Deputies.
A military coup begins the dictatorship that governs Brazil until 1985. Rubens Paiva’s congressional mandate is revoked in April 1964.
On January 20, Rubens is taken from his home in Rio de Janeiro. The National Truth Commission later concludes that he was tortured and killed in custody. His body is concealed and remains missing.
Eunice Paiva and their teenage daughter Eliana are also detained and interrogated. Eliana is released first; Eunice remains detained until February 2.
Brazil formally recognizes political disappearances through Law 9.140/1995. After decades of pressure, Rubens Paiva receives an official death certificate in 1996.
Brazil’s National Truth Commission presents findings that reconstruct Rubens Paiva’s detention, torture, death, and the effort to hide what happened.
Ainda Estou Aqui reaches international audiences, wins Best Screenplay at Venice, earns Fernanda Torres a Golden Globe, receives three Oscar nominations, and wins Best International Feature Film.
Who Was Eunice Paiva?
Although Rubens Paiva’s disappearance drives the plot, Eunice Paiva is the emotional and historical center of the film.
After her husband disappeared, Eunice had to protect and support five children while trying to discover what the state had done to him. She later studied law and became an important human-rights advocate. Her work also extended to Indigenous rights, including legal efforts connected to the recognition and protection of Indigenous territories.
This is one reason the film is more than a story about political repression. It follows what happens after the state removes someone from a family: uncertainty, bureaucracy, silence, financial and emotional survival, and the long struggle to have reality officially acknowledged.
Fernanda Torres plays Eunice through most of the story. Fernanda Montenegro appears as Eunice later in life. The casting adds another layer for Brazilian audiences because Torres and Montenegro are mother and daughter in real life, and both became internationally associated with major Walter Salles films.
Why the Film Focuses on Family Life Before the Disappearance
One of the most effective choices in I’m Still Here is that it does not begin by treating the Paivas only as historical symbols. The audience first sees a busy family: children, friends, meals, music, the beach, disagreements, jokes, and plans.
That ordinary life matters. When state agents enter the house, the political becomes intensely personal. Curtains are closed. Movement is controlled. Family members do not know what information they can trust. A home that initially feels open becomes a place of surveillance and fear.
Walter Salles has explained that the story was personal to him as well: he knew the Paiva family and was friends with the children. His adaptation therefore approaches the dictatorship not only through institutions and political events, but through the experience of the people left behind.
What Happened to Rubens Paiva?
The film leaves viewers with the same fundamental absence the family lived with: Rubens is taken away and does not come back.
The historical record is now much clearer than the official story available to the family in 1971. The National Truth Commission documented that Rubens entered military custody and investigated testimony about the torture inflicted on him. Its findings rejected the false version that he had escaped after a vehicle transporting him was intercepted.
According to the Commission’s conclusions, Rubens died after torture in the DOI in Rio de Janeiro, and a false account was constructed to conceal his disappearance. The location of his remains is still unknown.
That distinction is essential for understanding the Portuguese expression desaparecido político. In this historical context, “disappeared” does not simply mean that someone went missing. It refers to forced disappearance: state agents detain a person and then conceal the person’s fate or whereabouts.
The 2025 Correction to Rubens Paiva’s Death Certificate
The family’s struggle over official language did not end with the first death certificate issued in 1996. In January 2025, Rubens Paiva’s death record was corrected again to state that his death was violent and caused by the Brazilian state in the context of political persecution under the dictatorship.
That may sound like a bureaucratic detail, but it connects directly to one of the film’s central themes: the difference between knowing what happened and having institutions formally recognize what happened.
Was I’m Still Here Based on a Book?
Yes. The screenplay by Murilo Hauser and Heitor Lorega adapts Ainda Estou Aqui, the 2015 memoir by Marcelo Rubens Paiva, one of Eunice and Rubens Paiva’s children.
The book is not simply a chronological investigation of his father’s disappearance. It is also a book about his mother, family memory, aging, and what happens when personal memory and national memory begin to disappear.
That makes the title Ainda Estou Aqui — literally, “I’m still here” — especially resonant. The phrase can be read on several levels: survival, memory, presence after loss, and the refusal to let a person or a historical event disappear from public consciousness.
Why Fernanda Torres’ Performance Became Historic
Fernanda Torres’ performance as Eunice received international recognition before the Oscars. At the 2025 Golden Globes, she won Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama.
The moment had a strong connection to Brazilian film history. Her mother, Fernanda Montenegro, had previously received major international recognition for Central Station (Central do Brasil), another Walter Salles film. Montenegro was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1999.
At the 97th Academy Awards, Torres was nominated for Best Actress for I’m Still Here. She did not win that category, but the nomination itself placed a Brazilian performance at the center of the world’s largest film-awards conversation.
The Awards: Venice, Golden Globes and the Oscars
| Event | Recognition | Why it mattered |
|---|---|---|
| 81st Venice International Film Festival | Best Screenplay winner | The film’s world-premiere run established it as a major international contender. |
| 2025 Golden Globes | Fernanda Torres won Best Female Actor – Motion Picture – Drama | A landmark international acting win for a Brazilian performer. |
| 97th Academy Awards | 3 nominations: Best Picture, Best Actress, Best International Feature Film | The film competed beyond the international-film category. |
| 97th Academy Awards | Winner: Best International Feature Film | It became the first film representing Brazil to win the category. |
Did Brazil Really Win Its First Oscar With I’m Still Here?
The cleanest answer is: I’m Still Here gave Brazil its first Academy Award win for a film representing Brazil in the International Feature Film category. The Academy lists Brazil as the 2025 winner.
There is an important historical nuance. Black Orpheus (Orfeu Negro), which is set in Brazil and based on Brazilian material, won the foreign-language-film Oscar in 1960. But it represented France, not Brazil. That is why it does not count as a Brazilian win in the Academy’s country-based International Feature Film record.
Before I’m Still Here, Brazil had reached this category’s nominations with films including O Pagador de Promessas (Keeper of Promises), O Quatrilho, Four Days in September (O Que É Isso, Companheiro?), and Central Station (Central do Brasil).
Want the bigger picture of Brazilian film?
Read our History of Brazilian Cinema for context on Cinema Novo, censorship during the dictatorship, the Retomada, and internationally recognized Brazilian films.
Why I’m Still Here Matters Beyond Awards
1. It turns history into family experience
The dictatorship is not presented only through dates, generals, and political institutions. The audience sees how repression changes a kitchen, a bedroom, a family photograph, a conversation, and a child’s understanding of the world.
2. It centers the people who remain
The film’s perspective is largely Eunice’s. Instead of making disappearance the end of the story, it asks what the surviving family must do next.
3. It connects memory with democracy
The story shows why historical memory is not abstract. Documents, testimony, official records, and public recognition determine whether state violence is acknowledged or erased.
4. It introduced this history to international audiences
The awards brought the Paiva story, Brazilian cinema, and discussion of the 1964–1985 dictatorship to viewers who may have known very little about modern Brazilian history.
Brazilian Portuguese Vocabulary to Understand the Film
If you are learning Portuguese, Ainda Estou Aqui also gives you vocabulary that appears frequently in Brazilian discussions of history, politics, human rights, and memory.
| Portuguese | Natural English | Context |
|---|---|---|
| ditadura militar | military dictatorship | Brazil was under military rule from 1964 to 1985. |
| golpe militar | military coup | The 1964 coup that removed President João Goulart and began military rule. |
| cassação | revocation / removal from office | Used when political rights or a mandate are formally revoked. |
| preso político | political prisoner | A person imprisoned in connection with political repression. |
| desaparecido político | politically disappeared person | In this context, a victim of forced disappearance connected to state repression. |
| tortura | torture | A central subject in investigations of abuses committed during the dictatorship. |
| direitos humanos | human rights | A major part of Eunice Paiva’s later legal and public work. |
| depoimento | testimony / statement | Common in legal, historical, and investigative contexts. |
| memória, verdade e justiça | memory, truth and justice | A recurring expression in Brazilian discussions of dictatorship-era human-rights violations. |
| certidão de óbito | death certificate | An important document in the Paiva family’s long effort for official recognition. |
Why the Portuguese in the Film Is Useful for Learners
You should not watch I’m Still Here as if it were a two-hour vocabulary lesson. Its first value is the story. But for intermediate and advanced learners, it offers something textbooks often cannot: Brazilian Portuguese embedded in family relationships, emotional restraint, historical context, and different generations.
Listen not only for individual words, but for how people speak differently depending on the situation. A family conversation at home does not sound like an interrogation. An adult speaking to a child does not use language in exactly the same way as someone speaking to an authority. That variation is part of real fluency.
If register is difficult for you, our guide to formal vs. informal Brazilian Portuguese is a useful companion.
How to Study Portuguese With I’m Still Here
- Watch first for meaning. If you need English subtitles to follow the historical story, use them. Understanding the film matters more than proving you can watch without help.
- Rewatch selected scenes with Portuguese subtitles. Choose family conversations rather than trying to transcribe the entire movie.
- Collect chunks, not isolated words. Save complete expressions, question patterns, reactions, and ways people refer to one another.
- Notice register. Compare language used at home, with officials, in formal conversations, and between generations.
- Read about the history afterward. Historical context will make many words and scenes more meaningful on a second viewing.
For a broader language-learning approach, see our guide to the best way to learn Brazilian Portuguese. Film works best as one part of a balanced system that also includes speaking, focused study, listening, vocabulary, and feedback.
Five Reasons the Film Is Worth Watching
One of the old articles now being consolidated into this guide was built around “five reasons to watch.” The idea is still useful, but the reasons are stronger when they connect the film to what it actually does rather than simply calling it a masterpiece.
A documented true story
The Paiva case is one of the most extensively discussed forced-disappearance cases from Brazil’s dictatorship, and official investigations later reconstructed key parts of what happened.
Fernanda Torres’ controlled performance
Much of Eunice’s emotional life is communicated without speeches explaining exactly what the audience should feel. That restraint became one of the film’s defining features.
Walter Salles’ family-centered perspective
The film shows repression through ordinary domestic life, which gives political history a human scale.
Brazilian history without a lecture
You learn about the dictatorship because the characters are forced to live inside it, not because the film stops for a classroom explanation.
A gateway to Brazilian cinema
If this is one of your first Brazilian films, it can lead naturally to Walter Salles, Fernanda Montenegro, Central do Brasil, and other major works from Brazilian cinema.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is I’m Still Here based on a true story?
Yes. It is based on Marcelo Rubens Paiva’s memoir about his family and the forced disappearance of his father, Rubens Paiva, during Brazil’s military dictatorship.
What happened to Rubens Paiva?
Rubens Paiva was taken from his home in Rio de Janeiro on January 20, 1971. Brazil’s National Truth Commission later concluded that he was tortured, died in state custody, and that his body was concealed.
Was Rubens Paiva’s body ever found?
No. His remains have not been returned to the family, which is why his case is also described as a forced disappearance.
Who was Eunice Paiva?
Eunice Paiva was Rubens Paiva’s wife, mother of their five children, and later a lawyer and human-rights advocate. She also worked on Indigenous-rights issues in Brazil.
Why do both Fernanda Torres and Fernanda Montenegro play Eunice?
Fernanda Torres portrays Eunice during the central period of the story, while Fernanda Montenegro portrays her at an older age. Torres and Montenegro are also mother and daughter in real life.
Did I’m Still Here win an Oscar?
Yes. At the 97th Academy Awards in 2025, I’m Still Here won Best International Feature Film. It was also nominated for Best Picture, and Fernanda Torres was nominated for Best Actress.
Was it Brazil’s first Oscar?
It was the first film representing Brazil to win the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film. Black Orpheus won the category in 1960, but it represented France.
Did Fernanda Torres win the Golden Globe?
Yes. She won the 2025 Golden Globe for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama for her performance as Eunice Paiva.
What does Ainda Estou Aqui mean in English?
Literally, Ainda Estou Aqui means “I’m still here.” In the context of the book and film, the title resonates with survival, memory, presence, and the refusal to let people or history be erased.
Is the movie useful for learning Brazilian Portuguese?
Yes, especially for intermediate and advanced learners. It provides natural Brazilian Portuguese across family, formal, emotional, and historical contexts. Use it as listening input, not as your only learning method.
Sources and Further Reading
- Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences — 97th Academy Awards
- Golden Globes — I’m Still Here
- La Biennale di Venezia — Ainda Estou Aqui
- National Truth Commission — preliminary report on the Rubens Paiva case
- Brazilian Chamber of Deputies — Rubens Paiva parliamentary biography
- FUNAI — Eunice Paiva’s work connected to Indigenous rights
Learn Brazilian Portuguese Through the Brazil Behind the Language
Films can give you something a vocabulary list cannot: voices, relationships, history, register, emotion, and cultural context. The next step is turning what you understand into Portuguese you can actually use in conversation.
