Media portrayals of Rio favelas have led outsiders to believe that they are populated solely by violent drug dealers, loose women and helpless victims. These preconceptions are stronger nowhere in the world than in the local media of Rio itself. However, despite the existence of heavily armed drug factions in the favela of Maré, 99% of the inhabitants are not directly involved with criminal activity. The overwhelming majority are neither criminals nor victims. Despite the armed conflict, many people are often overcoming huge obstacles to achieve great success.

The films of UK director Ben Holman are a celebration of these people, their inspiring stories and what is, after five years of living in Rio, still his favourite place in an incredible city. The films follow five different personal stories, including Roberto the boxer who overcame extreme personal tragedy as a youngster to make it into the Brazilian team and is now a genuine Olympic hopeful. We also follow Nininho, the reformed drug dealer who is now a charismatic Evangelical preacher who has dedicated his life to ensuring others don’t go through the same things that he did. The films explore the wealth of music and cultural talent, the strong local economy, the creativity, the incredible determination and close sense of community. The armed conflict is never far away, but neither is a strong sense of humour which runs throughout.

“I See Maré” is part of a series of films Ben Holman made for The Guardian, which will be streamed from their website from May 17th on www.guardian.co.uk

The favelas of Rio continue to be a popular space for projections of urban warfare. “Tropa D´Elite” draw a picture of the favela as a gang-ruled haven of violence , now there´s the video game “Modern Warfare 2″ that portraits the favela as a mere battleground, full of enemies. With an astonishingly realistic simulation of the architectural specialities of a favela, the game leads from the “Asphalto” (the “official” city) into the maze of a favela where the ego-shooter is slaying one armed resident after the other, no further background stories told. “Modern Warfare 2″ is just another example of how violence seems to be the only current which favelas are associated with.