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Heitor Dhalia

Heitor Dhalia

Director, producer and writer · Born January 18, 1970 (56) · Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil

Cannes award nominee · Sundance award nominee

Heitor Dhalia (born 18 January 1970) is a Brazilian film director and screenwriter. He has directed five films since 1988. His film, À Deriva, competed in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival. Description above from the Wikipedia article Diane Lane, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
January 18, 1970 (56)
From
Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil
Works as
Director, producer and writer
Titles
10 on MovieCove · 30 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 155 days to Oct 26Up 1% in 30 days

What are Heitor Dhalia's films like?

Across their 9 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Survival and Power.

Genres

Drama3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 66th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies
Action2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 43rd percentile
: browse their Action movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Survival
27%
Power
21%
Morality
20%
Self
14%
Bonds
12%
Society
6%
Survival3 titles, browse their movies with this themeComing of age2 titles, browse their movies with this themeJustice2 titles, browse their movies with this themeIsolation2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 6 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Dark: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their dark movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 0 · Serious 3 · Dark 3

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

A split, not a type: Grounded 4 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 0

Intense: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their intense movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 0 · Charged 2 · Intense 4

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 1 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 1

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 4 · Some laughs 2 · Funny 0

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 2 · Even-paced 2 · Relentless 2

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 1 · Engaged 4 · Full focus 1

Open-ended: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their open-ended movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

A split, not a type: Resolved 4 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 1

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
9
Melancholic
4
Absurd
2
Contemplative
2
Thrilling
2
Other
3

How their films linger

Bittersweet5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Bittersweet5
  • Tragic2
  • Ambiguous2

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Heitor Dhalia's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 5 of their 10 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Netflix (2).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Heitor Dhalia's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

30 credits, 10 with a MovieCove page.

  • Funk (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2026)

    Producer

  • Tremembé(2025)

    Show 5 episodes · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 36th percentile of all shows

  • Rulers of Fortune(2025)

    Show 3 episodes · Director · Creator · Writer

    Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all shows

  • The Battle (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    Producer

  • Maria: The Outlaw Legend(2025)

    Show Producer

    Midcredits score: 35th percentile of all shows

  • O Jogo Que Mudou a História (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2024)

    Show 1 episode · Director · Creator

  • Grande Sertão(2023)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all films

  • Criminal Code(2023)

    Show Director · Creator · Writer

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all shows

  • Ballad of a Hustler (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2023)

    Director

  • Out of Breath (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2022)

    Producer

  • Dr. Gama (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    Producer

  • He, She, They (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    Show Creator

  • Renegaded Archangel (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    Show 40 episodes · Director

  • Anna (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)

    Director · Producer · Writer

  • Em Busca da Cerveja Perfeita (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)

    Director · Producer

  • Tungsten(2018)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films

  • All the Reasons to Forget (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2017)

    Producer

  • On Yoga: The Architecture of Peace (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2017)

    Director · Producer

  • Restless Love (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)

    Producer

  • Serra Pelada: A Saga do Ouro (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)

    Show 4 episodes · Director · Creator · Writer

  • Bald Mountain (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)

    Director · Producer · Writer

  • Thiago Pethit: Moon (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)

    Director

  • Gone(2012)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 37th percentile of all films

  • Adrift(2009)

    Director · Writer

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films

  • Drained(2006)

    Director · Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • Nina(2004)

    Director · Co-Writer

    Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films

  • The Three Marias (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)

    Writer

  • Conceição (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2000)

    Director · Screenplay

  • A Fit of Rage (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)

    Assistant Director

  • The Pantomime of Death (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)

    Director · Producer · Writer

Career shape

A full career of 29 titles, 28 of them dated from 1988 to 2025.

Biggest box office

Gone (2012)

$20M worldwide

Highest rated

Drained (2006)

Midcredits 88th

Most popular right now

Criminal Code (2023)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Directing17 of 29: 4 only directing, 13 with another role · typical Midcredits score68thWriting9 of 29: 1 only writing, 8 with another roleProducing15 of 29: 8 only producing, 7 with another roleOther crew6 of 29: 3 only other crew, 3 with another role

29 titles, 13 with more than one role — directing and producing overlap on 7 of them.

By decade

1980s1 · crew1990s1 · crew2000s5 · crew2010s10 · crew2020s11 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

Awards

2 major nominations and no wins, 2007–2009.

  1. 2009
    • Cannes award, nominated
  2. 2007
    • Sundance award, nominated · World Cinema - Dramatic

Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.

How do Heitor Dhalia's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 66th percentile, the median of all 6; across their 6 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 63rd percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

63rdpercentile
Typical film, the median of 6

Approval · how many liked their films

67thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 6

Reach · how many have seen their films

70thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 6

Midcredits score across 10 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up2
  • 50th to 74th4
  • 25th to 49th4

Shape of the crowd

6 of their 10 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Divisive1
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser6
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed1

Most divisive · producer

Maria: The Outlaw Legend (2025)

90th percentile spread · 29% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · director, writer, producer

Drained (2006)

Midcredits 88th · 77% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 74/100 and the pacing 46/100 in their films, across 4 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is Heitor Dhalia's work okay for kids?

Across a limited sample of up to 3 MovieCove titles with content scores.

Their medianMedian of all films
Sex & Nudity3 titlesmedian 40 · moderateMedian of all films: 32

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.

Who does Heitor Dhalia work with?

People who share at least 2 of Heitor Dhalia's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Egisto Betti shares the most, 5.

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers