Résumé

This article analyses the constitution of the essay film based on the theoretical contributions of authors such as Bazin, Machado, Xavier, Lins, Weinrichter, and Teixeira, highlighting its characteristics and singularities within the context of contemporary cinema. To illustrate this approach, the article examines the production process of the film Veronica (2020), directed by the authors, taken as a representative example of this filmic form. The short film centres on a character and a neighbourhood located in the city centre of São Paulo, both marked by processes of gentrification. Screened at the International Film Festival Rotterdam in 2021, the film serves as the basis for exploring how the essay film constitutes a distinctive — albeit peripheral — domain within cinematic language, by articulating subjectivity, critical reflection, and formal experimentation.