Apneia teaser

In the body of the Potengi River, on Brazil’s northeastern coast, lies a torn-open torso, home to the mangrove forest. This ecosystem, capable of storing up to four times more carbon than any other tropical forest, persists in its role of oxygenating the land and shielding it from the rising sea—despite surviving only in narrow remnants, concealed by private and industrial occupations.

In Apnea, a group of artisanal fishers sleep along the banks of the Potengi River, where they practice freediving. Their movements of bodily recovery merge with the shifting waters, whose appearance transforms with the presence or absence of oxygen, in the continuous cycle of the tides, the city, and life itself. The resilience of these bodies of water unfolds through a series of micro-actions, meditative fluctuations where the productive dimension of labor is suspended, bringing it into the fisher's communion with the river’s own rhythm.

Free divers

Geison Ribeiro

Allan Lima do Nascimento

Hugo Mendonça

Wildson Costa

Nivia Oliveira

Direction, Photography and Editing

Thales Pessoa

Sound Design

Eretz Toledo

Accesibility

Dialógica

Financial Support

Prefeitura Municipal do Natal

Ministério da Cultura

Lei Paulo Gustavo

Natal, 2024