With expired film stock, seemingly random shots, not much dialogue, and virtually no plot, there is little to recommend It is Night in America for casual viewing. It is definitely experimental, and as director, editor, and sound designer Ana Vaz presents these shots of animals and urban landscapes, it doesn’t feel like it’s meant for entertainment. But there’s a curiously poignant tone, with the blue tint darkening the cityscape, in their eyes. Night falls for these creatures, who once had a home in this city, and all they can do is survive. É Noite na América isn’t quite the eco-horror it proclaims to be, but its moody and trancelike direction is an interesting approach to the nature documentary genre.

The direction. The film is shot entirely on 16mm film stock and tinted blue like in old films. Of course, with animals as the main subject, there’s almost no dialogue, but the bringing back of this old, slowly disappearing style seems to mirror the ways these endangered species die in Brasília and most urban cities.