LA BORBOLETA

LA BORBOLETA

My personal project 'La Borboleta' follows my own original narrative story.  In the year 2040, Rio de Janeiro has become an ultra-modern city packed with skyscrapers and digital billboards.  Like a mix between Tokyo and Dubai, the newly dubbed 'Rio Nova' has become a playground for the rich and wealthy, home to the headquarters of almost every large corporation on the planet.  

In building the new technological hub of the world, the original inhabitants of the city were unlawfully driven out by the violent Milícia paid for by the city's 'Chairman': the new force of law after the original Military Police was disbanded in Rio Nova's birth.  With the surrounding favelas ever increasing after becoming overpopulated with migrant inhabitants, a territorial battle rages on the  the favela's and Rio Nova's bordering wall, between the 'La Revolta' resistance group and the evil Milícia.

Mateus Brito

2 months have gone by since Mateus was orphaned by the death of his father in a riot-induced favela fire.  Since then, Mateus has escaped the favelas and snuck into the inner city of Rio Nova, living on the streets and determined to find those responsible for his father's death.  He is a hopeful but conflicted 12 year-old boy, driven at first by anger and pain.  

Nevertheless, Mateus is an adventurous and cunning character as he finds ways to steal food, traverse the dense concrete jungle and hide from Milícia forces. He clings to his memories of his life before the creation of Rio Nova, holding onto his Brazil football jersey and photograph of his father as a soothing memento. Little does he know that, on his journey of vengeance in Rio Nova, Mateus will find a new family along the way who help remind him of the importance of life and moving forward.

Alvin Barnabas 'Barney' Bunker

Barney Bunker is a 35 year-old British product designer at a large global technology company.  He is humble but passionate, and is content with his simple office life in London.  Barney finds himself thrown into the chaos as his company sends him to an annual shareholder meeting at the company's newest headquarters in Rio Nova, presenting proposed crowd-control drone blueprints of his design.  

Having never travelled abroad before, he finds himself overwhelmed and under-prepared in this bouncing and humid city - packing only his best thick tweed suit for what he thought would be a short journey, Barney finds cheap clothes to replace his sweat-ridden suit as he navigates his way through the maze of Rio Nova.  On his travels, he encounters a young boy trying to steal his wallet.  With this child, Mateus, noticing how out-of-his-depth Barney really is, he offers to accompany Barney throughout the city in exchange for food and a place to sleep.

Alessandra Moutinho

The rise of Rio Nova brought about many changes to those living in the city beforehand.  Alessandra, descendent of the wealthy Moutinho family, is a confident and outgoing 33 year-old woman with family connections high up within the city's hierarchy of power.  Although she enjoys her comfortable life in the heart of the city, she often reminisces of her time as a first-lieutenant in the Military Police of Rio - a role very rare amongst women of her age.  At the turn of power in the city, The Chairman paid off the city's police force, commanding that those within must join the new forceful Milícia or resign.  Alessandra stood for good in the city and didn't believe in the violent goals of the Milícia, electing to resign from the force to have no part in the war against the favelas.

She can't help but feel guilty as she sees the chaos and destruction on the city boarder caused by the riots and civil war - Alessandra has lived in Rio her whole life, and knows that she should do more to help the innocent residents forced out of the city.  It is only when she meets Mateus and Barney that they inspire good back into her, as she joins La Revolta's freedom fighters and completes the trio of adventurers.