The Hidden Star of the Sertão
The Hidden Star of the Sertão (in Portuguese, A Estrela Oculta do Sertão) is a 2005 Brazilian documentary directed by photographer Elaine Eiger and the journalist Luize Valente. The central theme of the documentary is the crypto-jewish practices maintained by some families in the semi-arid northeast of Brazil (the Sertão) together with the search for their religious identity for many converts from the moment they have become aware of their origins. The documentary presents interviews and part of the research work of the historian of the University of São Paulo, Anita Novinsky, who is considered a leading authority on the subject of the Inquisition in Brazil, the genealogist Paulo Valadares, and the anthropologist of the Collège de France, Nathan Wachtel. Synopsis The idea of the directors to make the documentary arose in 2000, after reading a newspaper article about a town with less than 800 inhabitants in the extreme west of the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Norte, called Venha-Ver. According to the report, an American rabbi who had been to the village previously found that the townspeople maintained uniquely Jewish customs like lighting candles on Friday night, the circumcision of their baby sons on the eight day after