Towards a “semantics of power”: A case of resistance and recognition in contemporary Brazilian film

Abstract

Drawing on Lula’s Angels(As Panteras do Lula), a fake trailer which premiered on the Zel Junior YouTube channel and went viral in March/April 2022, this essay discusses the construction of a “semantics of power” within the context of a Brazilian “impotent grammar”. Thus, the present work explores how artist and content creator Zel Junior elaborates, trough pop influence and a critical and humorous expression, a language which inverts far-right signs in a desire for self-representation and recognition.