Matheus Bazzo

Matheus Bazzo
Born (1990-10-29) 29 October 1990
OccupationsDesigner, producer, photographer, art director and entrepreneur
Years active2011–present
Notable workO Jardim das Aflições

Matheus Bazzo Malgarise (born 29 October 1990 in Passo Fundo) is a Brazilian designer, photographer, producer, art director and entrepreneur. Bazzo is the producer of the movie O Jardim das Aflições 'The Garden of Afflictions', which depicts the work, thoughts and daily life of Brazilian philosopher and writer Olavo de Carvalho (1947–2022). He is also the founder of Lumine, a Catholic streaming platform, as well as of Minha Biblioteca Católica (My Catholic Library), a religious book subscription club.

Career

Born in the city of Passo Fundo, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Bazzo resided only for a short time in his own native city and moved to São Leopoldo with his family, to the region of Vale dos Sinos. At 16 he started experimenting with analog photography, having launched a zine called Câmera Diynamite[1], which published pictures shot by artists from around the world. In the aftermath, he began his undergraduate studies in Visual Arts at Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul. At the time he worked as a photographer and also as a designer, acting in companies of the sector and collaborating with press vehicles such as Vice[2].

In the year of 2011 Bazzo was introduced to the work of Olavo de Carvalho, and from the philosopher's ideas he conceptualized the movie O Jardim das Aflições, in order to present the life and daily routine of that Brazilian thinker. Matheus Bazzo later joined with director Josias Teófilo,[3] who had a similar project in mind. The partnership began when they jointly started developing this project.

Between 2015 and 2016, Matheus Bazzo and Josias Teófilo fundraised for the documentary in what was the biggest crowdfunding in Brazil's history[4], a fundraising valued at R$ 350.000,00 among 2.800 individual investors. The shooting took place in the year of 2015, in the United States, in Richmond, Virginia. The film premiere was held on 31 May 2017,[5] and had a great repercussion in mainstream media primarily due to differences between Olavo's supporters and opponents[6]. That same year, O Jardim das Aflições won the award for best picture and film editing in the 21st Cine-PE Festival.[7]

During 2017, Bazzo undertakes a personal project, Minha Biblioteca Católica (MBC), a book subscription club for Catholic readers that printed more than seven million books[8], including great religious classics such as The Story of a Soul, by Thérèse of Lisieux, Theology of the Body, by Pope John Paul II, as well as The Interior Castle, by Teresa of Ávila.

In November 2023, after three years of work, the company launched a groundbreaking edition of the Holy Bible, a revised translation of Father Matos Soares' 1927 work, based on the Vulgate – the most traditional version of Scripture in the Catholic Church, with references to manuscripts and versions in Hebrew and Greek.[9]

This version of the Bible was one of the winners of the 2024 Jabuti Prize in the "Editorial Production" category, receiving the trophy for best cover.[9] In addition, it won two medals for "Editorial Project" at the Brazilian Design Awards[10]. In the second half of 2025, the company began operations in the United States[11].

In the year of 2019, Matheus founds Lumine, a streaming platform with content designed for the Catholic audiences. That service gathers classic films of Charles Chaplin and Alfred Hitchcock, among others, and also movies and series with religious content, including original productions made by Lumine itself. In just three years Lumine became the biggest Catholic streaming platform in Latin America[12].

Personal life

Matheus converted to Catholicism in 2013. He is married with screenwriter and director Julia Sondermann since 2019 – they had three children together.

Works

Year Title Credit Genre
2017 O Jardim das Aflições Producer and coeditor Documentary
2018 Os Filhos de Cister Producer Miniseries
2020 A Vida de Sara Producer Documentary
2021 O Apóstolo do Brasil, A Missão de São José de Anchieta Executive producer Documentary
2022 Um Santo Entre Nós Executive producer and screenwriter Documentary
2022 A Vida Interior Executive producer Miniseries
2022 Deus: A procura Director TV special
2024 Brasil de Todos os Santos Writer TV series

References

  1. ↑ Gloria, Rafael (24 April 2012). "Camera Diynamite lança o primeiro Zine". Nonada Jornalismo (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 17 December 2025. Retrieved 18 December 2025.
  2. ↑ "Matheus Bazzo". www.vice.com (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 2 March 2024. Retrieved 18 December 2025.
  3. ↑ "Cineasta cria documentário baseado na obra filosófica de Olavo de Carvalho". Acervo (in Brazilian Portuguese). Correio Braziliense. 19 July 2016. Archived from the original on 12 December 2025. Retrieved 18 December 2025.
  4. ↑ "Financiamento coletivo leva mais uma produção às telas de cinema com quebra de recorde de arrecadação". Terra (in Brazilian Portuguese). Dino. Archived from the original on 27 December 2024. Retrieved 18 December 2025.
  5. ↑ "Em meio à controvérsia, documentário "O Jardim das Aflições" tem pré-estreia amanhã (31), em cinco capitais". Notícias Corporativas. Mundo do Marketing (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 13 October 2022. Retrieved 18 December 2025.
  6. ↑ Prisco, Luiz (14 May 2017). "Protesto contra filmes de "direita" faz Cine PE ser adiado". www.metropoles.com (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 18 December 2025.
  7. ↑ "Documentário pernambucano sobre filósofo Olavo de Carvalho vence o 21º Cine PE". G1 (in Brazilian Portuguese). 4 July 2017. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 18 December 2025.
  8. ↑ "Projeto editorial gaúcho expande atuação para os EUA". GZH (in Portuguese). 3 February 2026. Retrieved 3 February 2026.
  9. 1 2 "Editora de Dois Irmãos vence categoria do Prêmio Jabuti". Jornal do Comércio (in Brazilian Portuguese). 25 November 2024. Retrieved 18 December 2025.
  10. ↑ "Que Bíblia é essa que conquistou o Jabuti e prêmios de design". Gazeta do Povo (in Brazilian Portuguese). 5 December 2024. Retrieved 18 December 2025.
  11. ↑ "Projeto editorial gaúcho expande atuação para os EUA". GZH (in Portuguese). 3 February 2026. Retrieved 3 February 2026.
  12. ↑ "Lumine lança filme sobre Anchieta no maior evento on-line sobre cinema e religião do país - Vatican News". www.vaticannews.va (in Portuguese). 22 September 2021. Archived from the original on 19 March 2025. Retrieved 18 December 2025.