Carlos Diegues, also known as Cacá Diegues, is a well-known Brazilian film director, born in 1940 in Maceió. Director of box office hits such as “Joanna Francesa” (1973) and “Xica da Silva” (1976), Cacá Diegues won the Grand Prix des Amériques in the 2006 Montreal Film Festival for his film “The Greatest Love in the World” (2006).

Thrice-nominated for the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival for his films, “Subway to the Stars” (1987), “Quilombo”(1984) and “Bye Bye Brasil”(1980), he also served on the Cannes jury in 1981. His first award was a trophy from the Sao Paolo’s Art Critics Association (1974), for best original screenplay of “Joanna Francesa”.

Cacá Diegues is an “Officer” of France’s Order of Arts and Letters, Commander of the Order of Cultural Merit, and holds a Medal from the Order of Rio Branco.  He also received an award for Outstanding Achievement in the Art of Film in Bolivia in 1990, a life and work achievement award in Bolivia in 2007, and a Gloria Lifetime Achievement Award, from the Chicago Latino Film Festival, USA in 2005, amongst many other awards. He is also a member of the French Cinematheque.

With a law degree from the Pontifical Catholic University (PUC) where he founded a film club and began his activity as an amateur film director, Cacá Diegues is one of the leaders of Brazil’s Cinema Novo movement. His first professional film was “5 x Favela” (1962). “5 x Favela, now by ourselves” (2010) was in competition in the 2010 edition of the Douro Film Harvest.