Globo Actors Launch Campaign to End 12-Hour Filming Days

By Daniel Okafor

TV Globo actors and audiovisual workers launched a social media campaign on Tuesday (10) to abolish 12-hour working days on Brazilian film and TV sets. The collective O Set Fala — literally "The Set Speaks" — coordinates the mobilization, gathering artists, technicians and crew demanding fairer conditions.

Fernanda Montenegro, 97, posted a photo with a filming crew and wrote that the professionals are exhausted. Camila Pitanga, Sérgio Guizé and Humberto Carrão also posted messages of support. Actor José de Abreu went further, comparing a 60-hour weekly load to slave labor in a video published Monday (9). He noted that some professionals arrive at and leave the set outside their scheduled hours. The clock, in this industry, appears to be more suggestion than rule.

How long is a working day, really?

The 12-hour routine is standard across telenovelas, series, cinema and advertising. But total time away from home can reach 18 hours once commuting and preparation count. For logistics and production crews, the shift often exceeds 16 hours. The movement warns that fatigue hits not only the cast but also wardrobe assistants, costume staff and assistant directors.

Health data anchors the pressure for change. A 2021 study by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) links weeks of 55 hours or more to a 35% higher risk of stroke and a 17% higher risk of death from heart disease, compared with 35-to-40-hour weeks. In other words: the schedule is not merely gruelling, it is measurable in mortality tables.

What does Brazilian law actually say?

Law 6.533 of 1978 sets a six-hour daily limit for studio film work. O Set Fala admits the rule does not apply to all contracts. That gap between statute and practice is where the 12-hour day lives comfortably.

The issue gained momentum after Constitutional Amendment 141, dated 16 October 2026, which abolished the 6×1 shift schedule (six working days followed by one day off) and cut the maximum weekly working week to 40 hours. The federal government has yet to regulate the new working hours. The Supreme Federal Court (STF), Brazil's top constitutional court, is also examining the matter.

Who backs the movement?

The Union of Workers in the Film and Audiovisual Industry of São Paulo (Sindcine) declared its support. The union had already released a manifesto in July, following the death of an electrician on 14 June. Sindcine states that the 12-hour shift is treated as the sector's standard, including in service-provision contracts.

Brazil's Congress has joined the conversation too. The Social Communication Council (CCS) debated the question on Monday (9). Council member Caio Loures proposed evaluating whether compliance with labor and safety norms should become a criterion for receiving public funding — a suggestion that could hit producers where it matters most: the budget.

The council's next meeting is scheduled for 7 December.

What happens next?

For now, the campaign lives on social media, powered by some of Brazil's most recognizable faces. Montenegro's involvement, at 97, carries a particular weight — a career spanning nearly eight decades testifying that exhaustion is not a badge of honor.

The pressure points are stacking up: a constitutional amendment awaiting regulation, an STF case in progress, a union manifesto born from a workplace death, and a congressional council questioning public money for non-compliant productions. The 12-hour day has survived on convention and silence. Both are now in shorter supply.