Born on the Atlantic edge of Cascais — better known for seaside charm than creative grit — Alecrim Vagabundo has carved a bold mark as a young, ambitious, and selective production company. Founded in 2022, Alecrim Vagabundo crafts world-class documentaries and series that spark at the intersection of auteur cinema, culture, and sport.
Our ethos is simple: lean in scale, nimble in execution, true in story.
That philosophy shapes every frame. We are producing In This Room, a feature documentary film by Ana Rocha de Sousa, centered on the internationally acclaimed fado singer Carminho. Two new titles by Oscar-nominated director Tamara Kotevska are also underway: the feature film The Mammoths that Escaped the Kingdom of Erlik Khan and the series The Howl of the Wolves. Alecrim Vagabundo has also co-developed and produced a series with Red Bull Studios about big-wave surfers in Nazaré — a community bound by high stakes, higher waves, and the brutal, ecstatic pull of the Atlantic.
Grounded in place, global in perspective. Sensitive but fierce in telling the stories of those who honor where they come from, yet take the boldest path. That is the heartbeat of Alecrim Vagabundo.
A former professional bodyboarder and Portuguese national champion in 2002, founder Enrico Saraiva shifted from surf breaks to film sets, forging a career across Europe and the Americas. He brings a rare duality to his artistry: an instinct for movement shaped by the ocean, and a producer’s precision refined through years of international filmmaking.
Through his former company, Tugawood Pictures, he produced Gia Coppola’s Mainstream — made in collaboration with American Zoetrope, screened at Venice and Telluride, and later acquired by IFC — and Guy Nattiv’s Skin, a Toronto prize-winner screened at Berlin and Tribeca, and released by A24. He also served as executive producer of the Portuguese feature Mosquito, which opened the International Film Festival Rotterdam and was awarded the Critics’ Prize at the 44th São Paulo International Film Festival. Among his earlier credits is Octubre, winner of the Jury Prize in Un Certain Regard at Cannes. From 2014 to 2019, he led the film and series division of Delicatessen Filmes in São Paulo, Brazil.
Though his career carries him far, Saraiva stays rooted in Cascais. On quieter days, he can be found surfing at Guincho or walking through town with one of his three children.
A screenwriter, journalist, and playwright, Cadu Machado has worked with some of the world’s leading media companies, including TV Globo, Banijay, and Red Bull Media House.
His debut short film, As Piadas Infames do Aníbal, was screened and awarded at over thirty national and international festivals. As a writer, he contributed to the acclaimed Malhação – Viva a Diferença — winner of the International Emmy Kids Award — three seasons of Sessão de Terapia, and feature films such as Empirion: Uma Aventura com Einstein and Silvio, which portrays the kidnapping of Brazilian television icon Silvio Santos.
Cadu also creates documentary series and unscripted formats for major platforms and broadcasters. His curiosity, ear for dialogue, and sensitivity to cultural nuance shape a storytelling voice that resonates across formats and audiences.
A film and television producer and development consultant with over a decade of experience across Brazil, the United States, Portugal, Spain, and the MENA region, Gabriela Orestes builds bridges between artistry and structure, turning vision into viable collaboration. Her focus is on European funding, project financing, and both bi- and multilateral co-productions.
Her credits include the documentaries Racionais: From the Streets of São Paulo to the World (Netflix) and Diálogos com Ruth de Souza — winner of Best Direction at Festival do Rio — the docuseries Afronta (Canal Futura), the reality show Born to Fashion (NBC Universal), and the feature films Mosquito (IFFR) and Sonhar com Leões (PÖFF).
Alongside her production career, Gabriela is pursuing a PhD in Cultural and Media Studies at the University of Lisbon and Vrije Universiteit Brussel, where she examines the intersections of global streaming platforms and national identity in Europe.
