Brazil's prestigious production company Desvia Filmes is entering a new chapter following co-founder Gabriel Mascaro's departure to launch a separate company, Trema, with producer Paula Cosenza. With Mascaro's exit, British producer Rachel Daisy Ellis now leads Desvia's focus towards supporting new creative voices whilst maintaining the company's reputation for backing auteur-driven cinema. This organisational shift allows both companies to operate independently whilst maintaining the possibility of future collaboration.

Desvia Filmes, founded in 2010, has an exceptional track record with all 16 of its features premiering at major international festivals including Berlin, Cannes, and Locarno. Ellis is currently developing her own directorial projects, including the hybrid documentary-fiction film "The Last Cruise," which tells the story of an elderly couple choosing to spend their retirement years on a cruise ship rather than entering residential care. The concept originated from a conversation Ellis had over 15 years ago about elderly Britons dying on cruise ships, and was reimagined during the pandemic when she learned that many people were choosing to live permanently on cruise ships as a cost-effective alternative to housing in major cities.