Pele biopic directors: ‘It’s a social and cultural story as much as a sporting one’

“We grew up playing soccer. Our main interest comes from telling narratives about how the sport impacts socially and culturally all around the world,” says co-director Michael Zimbalist.

Jeff, right, and Michael, the directors of the biopic, Pelé: Birth of a Legend. Courtesy Ique Esteves

When American directing duo, the Zimbalist Brothers – Jeff and Michael – embarked on making the biopic Pelé: Birth of a Legend, they were faced with the daunting challenge of finding not one but two child actors that could portray the legendary Brazilian footballer – at the ages of 9 and 17.

“We needed two young boys who could authentically embody the spirit and charisma of the young Pelé, plus resemblance and acting ability,” says Michael. “But we were also adamant we needed two boys with exceptional skills on the football pitch.

“We searched the United States, Brazil, Europe, we had open castings, community outreach in Brazil and Brazilian communities around the world, we did a competition handing out flyers offering a reward for anyone that could find someone who could play and act like Pelé – we cast a really wide net.”

The brothers might have saved themselves a lot of effort had they stuck with their early instincts while looking at photos of football pitches to shoot on.

“One of photos happened to be taken on a day that a team was practicing and there was this small blurry player in the distance,” says Michael.

“My brother noticed him and said, ‘That kid’s got an interesting look, I wonder if we can track him down?’ Later, after hundreds of auditions, we’d found Kevin de Paula [who plays the teenage Pelé], and the location team said, ‘He’s the one from that photo’.”

After all the effort, the casting turned out to be perfect.

“They were both incredible,” Michael says. “Leonardo Lima Carvalho [who plays the younger Pele] was a real natural, too.

“Neither of them had any previous acting experience, but from day one they came in with so much charm and ability and charisma. They didn’t even speak English – they had to learn their lines phonetically. Imagine that pressure on a 9-year-old kid. You’ve never acted, you’re playing the legendary Pelé with hundreds of people on set watching you – and in a language you don’t speak. It’s amazing that they pulled it off.”

Football is still a niche sport in the US, but the Zimbalists have a personal, and political, connection to the game and Brazil.

“We grew up playing soccer. Our main interest comes from telling narratives about how the sport impacts socially and culturally all around the world,” says Michael.

“The story is an opportunity to not only tell the story of the birth of the legend of Pelé, but also the birth of Brazil and its national identity and to celebrate that part of Brazilian culture that we really love. It’s a social and cultural story as much as a sporting one. We love the game for what it is, but we love it more for what it stands for, for the way it is an international language that allows cultures to communicate.”

• Pelé: Birth of a Legend is in cinemas now