‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ Producer Daniel Dreifuss Boards ‘Bloodstained Swan’ From Pipa Pictures (EXCLUSIVE)

After more than 20 years in Brazilian film distribution, Alex Levy-Heller’s Rio-based Pipa Pictures is setting up a U.S. base, venturing into co-production as it develops its first two projects with “All Quiet on the Western Front” producer Daniel Dreifuss and Felipe Joffily, best known for his Brazilian box office hit, “Muita calma nessa hora.” L.A.-based Dreifuss is boarding the fact-based drama “Bloodstained Swan” (“Cisne manchado de sangue”), which Levy-Heller is co-writing and will direct. Joffily will helm road movie “Pan-American Soul” (“Alma Panamericana”) with Brazil’s Downtown Filmes handling distribution. “Our goal is to connect Brazilian producers with American producers to develop projects and build international partnerships, mainly between Brazil and the United States, but also with other countries. We want to serve as a bridge between these producers, helping them work together on international co-productions, while also expanding the reach of Brazilian films through our distribution catalog,” Levy-Heller told Variety. Alex Levy-Heller, CEO, Pipa Pictures The move comes as interest in Brazilian films has spiked given the recent back-to-back success of two films at the Oscars: 2025 Best International Feature winner “I’m Still Here” and in 2026, Kleber Mendonça Filho’s political drama “The Secret Agent,” which scored four nominations including for lead Wagner Moura. The Pipa Pictures CEO will be attending the American Film Market (AFM), now underway until Nov. 15. A historical thriller inspired by actual events, “Bloodstained Swan” (working title) will be produced by Brazil’s Alelo Filmes and Dreifuss’s Anima Pictures, with Pipa Pictures co-producing. Set in the 1960s, the story spans Rio de Janeiro, Goiás, São Paulo and Montevideo as it follows Herbert Cukurs, a Latvian immigrant who introduced the popular swan-shaped pedal boats to the Rodrigo de Freitas lagoon in Rio. All went well for him until he was identified by a Holocaust survivor as the notorious Butcher of Riga, the Latvian aviator who became a Nazi collaborator and Holocaust perpetrator during World War II. As the story blends psychological suspense and espionage, it also addresses the flight of Nazis to Latin America and the Mossad operations to track them down. “One of my objectives as a filmmaker is to make films that are both Brazilian and Jewish because that’s something that we don’t have much of in Brazil,” said Levy-Heller, who expects Dreifuss to bring his own creative vision to the project, along with valuable talent and expertise in script development and producing. “Incidentally, Dreifuss and I are both descendants of Holocaust survivors,” he added. “I think the story is fascinating. It’s one of those stories I’m always drawn to because it sounds implausible, almost hard to believe it’s true. Most people in Rio, or those who have visited, have seen the swan-shaped paddle boats. I don’t think anyone looking at that romantic, playful, nostalgic image would imagine that the person behind it was a Nazi who fled and reinvented himself with a new life. It’s such a contradiction to the person he was, a wolf in sheep’s clothing,” said Dreifuss. “I’m excited by the challenge of bringing such an ambitious narrative to life as an international co-production, potentially involving Uruguay and Germany. Drawing on my experience working across different cultures, territories and funding systems, I hope to help make the project a reality,” he told Variety, adding that while this project serves as Levy-Heller’s expansion into the U.S., he’s on a “reverse route,” returning to produce again in Brazil with Brazilian stories. The second co-production, “Pan-American Soul,” is produced by Fiti Produções and Pipa Pictures in the U.S. It is based on the actual adventures of former surfing magazine editor Adrian Kojin as he drove across the Americas on a motorcycle with a surfboard strapped to his back. Fiti Produções head Carlos Sanfelice brings his experience in surfing documentaries. “We chose Joffily to direct as he’s capable of directing both mainstream and auteur films,” said Levy-Heller, who added: “He also likes to surf!” Kojin rode across the Americas in the 1980s, when several countries were experiencing political turmoil, placing the story against the political backdrop of the time. “At the same time, it is a journey of self-discovery, as he gains new perspectives and insights along the way.” “I think it’s a great story for an international co-production so that’s where Pipa Pictures comes in. Pipa Pictures has handled the release of more than 50 feature films, both fiction and documentary. Its catalog spans a range of genres and production profiles, from independent and auteur cinema to titles with broader mainstream appeal. Among the films it has distributed are “Elvis & Madonna,” “Jovens Polacas,” “Noites de Alface,” “Lima Barreto” and “Licença para Enlouquecer.” It has partnered on projects with Globo Filmes, Globoplay, Telecine, Turner and Canal Brasil. For the first half of 2027, Pipa Pictures is preparing the releases of “Revoada – Versão Steampunk,” an animated film by Ducca Rios produced by Origem Content; “Malick,” by Cassio Tolpolar and Modou Awa Dieye, selected for the Novos Rumos competition at the Rio Film Festival; and “O Mundo Que Eu Conheço Lá Não Existe Mais,” by Tiago Luciano, produced by Luc Filmes and starring Lucy Ramos and Eduardo Moscovis.