Selton Mello

Acting

Selton Mello

Born 1972-12-30 · Passos, Minas Gerais, Brazil

Selton Figueiredo Melo, known as Selton Mello (born December 30, 1972) one of Brazil’s most respected actors and directors, has built a remarkable career spanning four decades. From his beginnings as a child actor to his status as a celebrated artist, Mello has consistently demonstrated his passion for storytelling and connection with audiences. Born in Passos, Minas Gerais, Mello began acting in Brazilian television soap operas during the 1980s. His talent quickly earned him recognition, leading to his transition to cinema. In the 1990s, he gained acclaim with films such as Lavoura Arcaica (To the Left of the Father) and O Auto da Compadecida (A Dog’s Will). The latter remains a cultural classic, with Mello’s role as Chicó highlighting his comedic timing and depth. Mello’s versatility as an actor is evident in his diverse filmography, including Meu Nome Não É Johnny (My Name Ain’t Johnny)* and Jean Charles, a poignant portrayal of a Brazilian immigrant’s tragic story. In Ainda Estou Aqui (I’m Still Here), directed by Walter Salles, Mello delivered a powerful performance as Rubens Paiva, a congressman disappeared during Brazil’s military dictatorship. Beyond acting, Mello has excelled as a director. His 2011 film O Palhaço (The Clown), which explores themes of identity and purpose, received widespread acclaim and numerous awards. His second directorial work, O Filme da Minha Vida (The Movie of My Life), further showcased his storytelling ability, earning accolades at the Rome Film Festival. A member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Mello plays a key role in promoting Brazilian cinema internationally. With over 40 years in the industry, Selton Mello remains a significant figure, celebrated for his contributions as an actor, director, and cultural embassador.

Acting credits

Anaconda poster
5.8

A group of friends facing mid-life crises head to the rainforest with the intention of remaking their favorite movie from their youth, only to find themselves in a fight for their lives against natural disasters, giant snakes and violent criminals.

Anaconda

2025

I'm Still Here poster
7.9

A woman married to a former politician during the 1971 military dictatorship in Brazil is forced to reinvent herself and chart a new course for her family after a violent and arbitrary act.

I'm Still Here

2024

A Dog's Will poster
8.4

The lively João Grilo and the sly Chicó are poor guys living in the hinterland who cheat a bunch of people in a small town in Northeastern Brazil. When they die, they have to be judged by Christ, the Devil and the Virgin Mary before they are admitted to paradise.

A Dog's Will

2000

Trash poster
7.1

Set in Brazil, three kids who make a discovery in a garbage dump soon find themselves running from the cops and trying to right a terrible wrong.

Trash

2014

To the Left of the Father poster
7.1

In 1940s São Paulo, Pedro’s tasked to retrieve his estranged brother André. André’s departure stems from a domineering father, an overly affectionate mother, and Pedro’s jealousy over the father’s favoritism. Further complicating matters is André’s unconventional relationship with their sister, Ana.

To the Left of the Father

2001

The Clown poster
7.2

The life of the owners of Circus Esperança, Puro Sangue e Pangaré, father and son, who plays two clowns. At a certain point, Pangaré starts showing tiredness and sadness for being an unhappy clown.

The Clown

2011

La Perra poster
NR

On a remote, wind-lashed island off the Chilean coast, Silvia earns her living harvesting seaweed and shares a quiet life with her partner. When she adopts a stray puppy, Yuri, her days fill with joy, love, and a tenderness that stirs a long-suppressed longing for motherhood. But Yuri’s sudden disappearance reawakens a haunting childhood trauma, forcing Silvia to confront a past she has never truly left behind.

La Perra

2026

The Rogue's Trial poster
6.6

After 20 years missing, João Grilo returns to Taperoá to join his old friend Chicó and, after his story of resurrection spreads, he is disputed as an electoral candidate by the two most powerful politicians in the city.

The Rogue's Trial

2024

No artwork available
NR

A young man drawn into the designs of his tech billionaire father in a remote desert compound where the wealthy seek to outwit death using cryonics and radical science. The woman who binds these two estranged men submits to the project with mixed emotions, as they all face challenges linking love, life and death.

Zero K

Four Days in September poster
7.5

Fernando, a journalist, and his friend César join terrorist group MR8 in order to fight Brazilian dictatorial regime during the late sixties. César, however, is wounded and captured during a bank hold up. Fernando then decides to kidnap the American ambassador in Brazil and ask for the release of fifteen political prisoners in exchange for his life.

Four Days in September

1997

Nina poster
5.7

After losing her job, an unstable woman sinks further and further into a violent fantasy world.

Nina

2004

Slightly Out of Tune poster
5.8

A group of friends come of age during the political turmoil that plagued Brazil in the 1960's and 70's. Together, these musicians form a band called "Os Desafinados" and become a part of the groundbreaking Brazilian musical movement called Bossa Nova

Slightly Out of Tune

2008

Drained poster
7.0

A pawn shop proprietor buys used goods from desperate locals – as much to play perverse power games as for his own livelihood, but when the perfect rump and a backed-up toilet enter his life, he loses all control.

Drained

2006

Tributo: Francisco Cuoco poster
10.0

No synopsis available yet.

Tributo: Francisco Cuoco

2025

Câmera, Close! poster
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Câmera, Close!

2005

Sete Vidas poster
9.5

No synopsis available yet.

Sete Vidas

2007

Rio 2096: A Story of Love and Fury poster
7.2

“Rio 2096 – A Story of Love and Fury” is an animated film that portrays the love between an immortal hero and Janaína, the woman he has been in love with for 600 years. As a backdrop to the romance, the feature highlights four phases of Brazilian history: colonization, slavery, the Military Regime and the future, in 2096, when there will be a war for water.

Rio 2096: A Story of Love and Fury

2013

Lino poster
6.5

Lino works as an entertainer at children's parties, but he can't stand the way children treat him, making fun of him because he works in a cat's costume. Determined to change his life, he visits a wizard, but the magic doesn't work in the right way, and he wakes up as a big cat.

Lino

2017

Babenco: Tell Me When I Die poster
7.1

Besieged by cancer and nearing the end, the genius Argentine-Brazilian filmmaker Héctor Babenco (1946-2016) asks Bárbara Paz, his wife, for one last wish: to be the protagonist of his own death.

Babenco: Tell Me When I Die

2020

Bury Your Dead poster
5.5

Edgar Wilson, a roadkill collector in rural Brazil, dreams of escaping his small-town existence with Nete, the love of his life. When Nete decides to join her family in an apocalyptic cult, Edgar finds himself at a crossroads. With the world on the brink of destruction, Edgar and his unlikely companion Tomás – a disgraced and excommunicated priest – embark on a dangerous road trip through a landscape plagued by chaos and despair.

Bury Your Dead

2025

Uma Escola Atrapalhada poster
4.5

A real state agency wants to buy and demolish the traditional school Matheus Rose, to use the lot to build a hotel. The proposition unleashes a feel of distrust among the school students and staff, especially with the arrival of new, mysterious students.

Uma Escola Atrapalhada

1990

Lope: The Outlaw poster
5.3

A chronicle of the life of Spanish playwright and poet Lope de Vega, who dominated Spain's early Golden Age of Theater in the 16th century. Lope returns home from war and enters the theater world when a producer's beautiful daughter takes a shine to him. They embark on a passionate affair as his plays begin to win popular acclaim.

Lope: The Outlaw

2010

Girls from ABC poster
6.1

Aurélia is a young black woman who works at a factory and lives in a working-class neighborhood in São Paulo, whose boyfriend Fábio gets involved with a racist neo-nazi group.

Girls from ABC

2003

Dry Movie poster
6.7

Weatherman from a TV network goes back to his hometown, Vale da Rocha, a place in Northeast Brazil, devastated by the drought. He is forced to face the geographic elements and his own memories.

Dry Movie

2005

Behind the camera

The Clown poster
7.2

The life of the owners of Circus Esperança, Puro Sangue e Pangaré, father and son, who plays two clowns. At a certain point, Pangaré starts showing tiredness and sadness for being an unhappy clown.

The Clown

2011

The Clown poster
7.2

The life of the owners of Circus Esperança, Puro Sangue e Pangaré, father and son, who plays two clowns. At a certain point, Pangaré starts showing tiredness and sadness for being an unhappy clown.

The Clown

2011

Quando o Tempo Cair poster
7.0

A retired old man, his unemployed son and the young grandson who isn't aware of anything. They all live together in a small apartment. To try to solve everyone's problems, the elder man tries to get a job but times have changed and he'll have to face a whole new reality.

Quando o Tempo Cair

2006

Quando o Tempo Cair poster
7.0

A retired old man, his unemployed son and the young grandson who isn't aware of anything. They all live together in a small apartment. To try to solve everyone's problems, the elder man tries to get a job but times have changed and he'll have to face a whole new reality.

Quando o Tempo Cair

2006

Quando o Tempo Cair poster
7.0

A retired old man, his unemployed son and the young grandson who isn't aware of anything. They all live together in a small apartment. To try to solve everyone's problems, the elder man tries to get a job but times have changed and he'll have to face a whole new reality.

Quando o Tempo Cair

2006

The Alienist poster
NR

Bacamarte, a Brazil-born Portuguese (when Brazil was a colony), is a prominent physician whose sincere obsession for discovering a universal method to cure pathological disorders drives inhabitants of the small Brazilian town of Itaguaí to fear, conspiracy, and revolutionary attempts.

The Alienist

The Movie of My Life poster
7.3

The sierras of southern Brazil, 1963. The son of an French man and a Brazilian woman, Tony is a young man with a profound love of cinema and poetry. After graduating from college he returns to his small town in rural Brazil, to find out that his father had left for good, back to France. Tony then looks for the company of his fathers friends in search of information and references of a lost male role-model. He becomes a school teacher and a male figure to kids, in an attempt to provide them with something he lacks himself. A series of developments lead him to a surprising final lead on his fathers' whereabouts and reasons for leaving.

The Movie of My Life

2017

The Movie of My Life poster
7.3

The sierras of southern Brazil, 1963. The son of an French man and a Brazilian woman, Tony is a young man with a profound love of cinema and poetry. After graduating from college he returns to his small town in rural Brazil, to find out that his father had left for good, back to France. Tony then looks for the company of his fathers friends in search of information and references of a lost male role-model. He becomes a school teacher and a male figure to kids, in an attempt to provide them with something he lacks himself. A series of developments lead him to a surprising final lead on his fathers' whereabouts and reasons for leaving.

The Movie of My Life

2017

December poster
7.0

Caio is 40 years old and lives in the Rio de Janeiro's countryside, where he owns a scrap-metal yard. On Christmas' Eve, he goes to the capital to visit his family and friends. Finally he will be able to meet a man he has not seen for a long time: himself.

December

2008

December poster
7.0

Caio is 40 years old and lives in the Rio de Janeiro's countryside, where he owns a scrap-metal yard. On Christmas' Eve, he goes to the capital to visit his family and friends. Finally he will be able to meet a man he has not seen for a long time: himself.

December

2008