Me & My Friend Slingshot

Based on the painting "Slingshot" by Alex-Keller Fonseca.

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1º Chapter: — Gil Neves (13) is roaming the rainforest with his only friend the slingshot, when he meets an ornithologist looking for an endemic bird species in the deeper corners of the Ôbo. Together they set on a search through the thick of the woods to find the reclusive Celêlê-mangochi. Starring Paulo Jorge Neves as "Gil", Vivalda Prazeres as the boy's mother, and Octavio Veiga as the ornithologist. Written by Gilberto Ceita, original music by Guilherme de Carvalho (see his TEDx performance).

We did a lot of prep-work to select the suitable paintings for Wê. Pictured here writers Sofia Santos, Edneyse Coelho, Marlucy Bandeira, Gilberto Ceita, Wilme Dias, painter Dio Lima, visiting the city of Angolares to interview Nelito Pereira on the subject of art. Akaisa Borges behind the camera.

The picture shows me and Gilberto Ceita after the prize-awarding.

"Me And My Friend Slingshot": When Gil returns from the Ôbo, he's no longer aimless — he now wants to study biology in order to better understand the birds. Gil's transformation in the movie can be an inspiration to other children his age. The bird-researcher's role in the story is to encourage adults to appreciate the nature and birds, and to take care of the rich endemic diversity in São Tomé. The fowler part is played by Ito Veiga, who has worked with bird scientists for the last 20 years and knows a lot about the Santomean bird species.

Ito Veiga catches birds with a tennis-net-like trap to take a blood sample and attach a sensor.

The next step is to create a storyboard to visualize each chapter, characters, scenes, locations, and the dramatic story arc. The bottom picture show the artist Will Ferlack responsible for storyboarding.

Actors & Actresses

To find the right actor for the character Gil Neves — "Me And My Friend The Slingshot" — we conducted a casting where 30 boys from locations around the country competed. The lower picture shows Paulo Jorge Neves who won the part with his mother in the film played by the local television star Vivalda Prazeres.