Sleep With Your Eyes Open

Sleep With Your Eyes Open
PortugueseDormir de Olhos Abertos
Directed byNele Wohlatz
Written by
  • Pío Longo
  • Nele Wohlatz
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyRoman Kasseroller
Edited by
  • Tsai Yann-shan
  • Ana Godoy
Music byGustavo Montenegro
Production
companies
  • Ruda Cine
  • Blinker Filmproduktion
  • Yi Tiao Long Hu Bao
  • CinemaScópio
Distributed by
  • Vitrine Filmes (Brazil)
Release dates
  • 17 February 2024 (2024-02-17) (Berlinale)
  • 11 September 2025 (2025-09-11) (Brazil)
Running time
97 minutes
Countries
  • Brazil
  • Argentina
  • Germany
  • Taiwan
Languages
  • Mandarin
  • Portuguese
  • English
  • Spanish

Sleep With Your Eyes Open (Portuguese: Dormir de Olhos Abertos) is a 2024 drama film directed by Nele Wohlatz, co-written with Pío Longo. A co-production of Brazil, Argentina, Germany, and Taiwan, it follows Xiao Xin (Chen Xiao Xin) search for belonging alongside the Taiwanese diaspora in Recife, Brazil.

The film had its world premiere in the Encounters section of the 74th Berlin International Film Festival on 17 February 2024, where it won the FIPRESCI prize. It was theatrically released in Brazil by Vitrine Filmes on 11 September 2025.

Cast

Production

Brazilian filmmaker Kleber Mendonça Filho and French producer Emilie Lesclaux produced the film through their CinemaScópio producing company. In 2016, Mendonça had introduced to Wohlatz the Taiwanese (and Chinese) diaspora living in Recife, the German filmmaker also directed a docudrama about the Chinese diaspora in Argentina, The Future Perfect (2016).

Filming

Principal photography took place in Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil.

References

  1. 1 2 Barraclough, Leo (2024-02-21). "How Locarno Winner Nele Wohlatz Explores Migrants' Loss of a Sense of Belonging in Berlinale Film 'Sleep With Your Eyes Open'". Variety. Retrieved 2026-10-29.
  2. ↑ Hunter, Allan. "'Sleep With Your Eyes Open': Berlin Review". Screen. Retrieved 2026-10-29.
  3. ↑ Andrade, Elena del Olmo (2024-09-29). "Dormir de olhos abertos (Nele Wohlatz). San Sebastián 2024 - Horizontes Latinos". Caiman Ediciones (in Spanish). Retrieved 2026-10-29.
  4. ↑ "Sleeping with Your Eyes Open - FIPRESCI | The International Federation of Film Critics". Retrieved 2026-10-29.
  5. 1 2 Buzzatto, Pedro (2025-09-17). "Tudo o que você precisa saber sobre o filme "Dormir de Olhos Abertos"". Harper's Bazaar » Moda, beleza e estilo de vida em um só site (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2026-10-30.
  6. 1 2 Guerra, André (2025-09-11). "'Dormir de Olhos Abertos' revela o Recife pelo olhar imigrante chinês | Diario de Pernambuco - Rumo aos 200 anos". www.diariodepernambuco.com.br (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2026-10-30.