The new Brazilian drama series on Netflix called Children of the Church Steps is about four street kids in Rio de Janeiro and what they do in the 36 hours before a terrible event. The show was created by Luis Lomenha and co-directed by Márcia Faria. It stars Samuel Silva as Douglas and Patrick Congo, Wendy Queiroz and Andréi Marques as Douglas’s friends Seven, Popcorn, and Jesus. Together, they struggle to survive while sleeping on the steps of Church Their lives take a turn when they find a stash of checks in the warehouse of a chocolate factory. They hope that this will help pay for a proper funeral for a man Douglas thought of as a father figure. But their plan to cash the checks runs into problems which forces the group to try riskier schemes.
The show shows life on the streets in a gritty, realistic way, with a mostly Black cast and cameos from well-known Brazilian actors like Antônio Pitanga and Bruno Gagliasso.It uses dreamlike elements to show how the kids’ minds and inner lives work, telling a raw but empathetic story. Produced by Jabuti Filmes and Kromaki—the miniseries has four episodes that show each child’s struggles and dreams in a tough city setting from a different point of view.
Is Children of the Church Steps Based on Real Events?
Yes, Children of the Church Steps is inspired by the tragic real-life events of the Candelária Massacre in 1993. A group of armed men, later identified as police officers, opened fire on a group of homeless children sleeping on the steps of Candelária Church in Rio de Janeiro. This horrible event happened. The massacre killed eight young people between the ages of 11 and 19, and it still affects people in Brazil today.
Luis Lomenha, who grew up in Rio, made the show to give those young victims a voice and make them seem like real people, not just tragic victims. Even though the characters in Children of the Church Steps are made up—they are based on real teens and young adults who were affected by the harsh realities of the time. The show shows the hopes, dreams and wrongs that each child faced from their own point of view. This makes it a powerful reminder of the lives that were lost in the Candelária Massacre.
Luis Lomenha, who made Children of the Church Steps, has given us deep insights into what he had in mind for the show. In a recent interview, Lomenha said that the show’s goal is to show these kids as more than just sad characters. He wants people to see them as real, lively teens and young adults whose hopes, joys, and lives were cut short unfairly. Lomenha wants people to feel both sorry for the kids and angry about the unfair things that happened to them.
Lomenha wants to show how human and innocent the children are by telling the story from their point of view. He said, “I hope audiences see these children not as symbols of tragedy, but as real, joyful human beings with dreams, hopes, and childhoods that were unjustly cut short.” His goal is to bring attention to their worth and uniqueness which are often lost in stories that only talk about violence and hardship.
Some magical realism elements were also added by Lomenha to the show to show how rich these kids’ emotions are. He wanted to show their hopes and happiness in a way that gives their story more depth and warmth. The children were strong and hopeful, even though their lives were hard as shown by this mix of reality and fantasy.
Because Lomenha is known for writing stories with social messages—he used parts of this tragedy to show how hard life is for Brazilian street kids in the series. Instead of just showing the tragedy, Children of the Church Steps looks at the lives of these kids in a more personal and nuanced way, trying to show them as unique people with their own dreams and strengths. This method comes from Lomenha’s desire to show that these kids are more than just symbols of hardship; they are real people with feelings, hopes, and dreams who, despite their problems, try to stay human.
Lomenha has said that the show was partly inspired by events like the Candelária massacre as well as other cases of institutional neglect and police brutality. There have been many threats against street kids over the years, and the people who are supposed to protect them have often hurt them. Lomenha wants to give these young people a voice by using a mix of realistic and magical realism to tell their stories. Using magical realism, he lets the audience into the kids’ minds by showing their dreams, fantasies, and short moments of happiness that balance out their hard lives.
Lomenha has said in interviews that the show is not a documentary but a work of fiction based on research, interviews, and first-hand accounts. In order to make more people aware of these children’s lives and the systemic problems they face, he worked with social workers, historians, and advocates to craft an honest and caring story.
For more detailed recaps and TV insights, visit otavo.tv.
