Fernando Meirelles was born on November 5, 1955 in the city of São Paulo. The child of a doctor, he had the opportunity to travel and to be exposed to different cultures. He attended the University of São Paulo and majored in architecture, but began experimenting with film.

When he graduated, he joined with friends to create a production company, called Olhar Eletronico, which produced TV shows. When the company closed, he began working as an ad director, and became a partner in O2 Filmes, one of the largest ad companies in Brazil.

But Meirelles’ big break came in 2002, when he decided to adapt the book “City of God” into a movie, which became an international hit and earned him an Oscar nomination as best director. In 2005, he directed “The Constant Gardener,” a film starring Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz, which received several Golden Globe nominations and four Oscar nominations. He most recently directed “Blindness,” released in 2008, which stars Julianne Moore and Mark Ruffalo, and was featured at the Cannes Film Festival. Meirelles also produced several popular Brazilian films including “Cidade dos Homens” in 2007 and “O ano que meus pais sairam de ferias” in 2006.

He’s currently working as executive producer on “Extraordinary Garbage,” a film about Brazilian artist Vik Muniz, which is currently in post-production.