Em Família
Promotional poster to promote the premiere of the telenovela.
Also known as	Helena's Shadow
Genre	Drama
Created by	Manoel Carlos
Directed by	Jayme Monjardim Leonardo Nogueira
Theme music composer	Vinícius de Moraes and Tom Jobim
Opening theme	"Eu Sei Que Vou Te Amar" by Ana Carolina
Country of origin	Brazil
Original language	Portuguese
No. of episodes	143 75 (International Version)
Production
Production location	Brazil
Camera setup	Multiple-camera setup
Running time	70 minutes
Original release
Network	TV Globo
Release	3 February (2014-02-03) – 18 July 2014 (2014-07-18)
Related
Amor à Vida Império

Em Família (Helena's Shadow) is a Brazilian primetime telenovela created by Manoel Carlos and produced and broadcast by TV Globo. It premiered on 3 February 2014, replacing Amor à Vida and ended 18 July 2014, replaced by Império.

Julia Lemmertz, Bruna Marquezine and Humberto Martins star as the protagonists, while Vivianne Pasmanter and Gabriel Braga Nunes star as the antagonists.

According to Ibope, the average was 29.63 (30) points - the lowest rated 9PM telenovela of all time.^[1][2][3]

Plot

Tells the story of two cousins, Helena (Julia Lemmertz) and Laerte (Gabriel Braga Nunes), who grow up united by two strong ties: family and love. Laerte is a musician who is in love with his cousin, but consumed by an obsessive jealousy, especially of his friend Virgílio (Humberto Martins), who has always fostered a platonic love for Helena. Helena herself has a strong personality and has never accepted the possessive side of her problematic boyfriend, although she keeps teasing him.

On the night before his marriage to Helena, Laerte argues with Virgílio and strikes him across the face. Taking his rival for dead, Laerte quickly buries the body to hide the evidence. But Virgílio survived the blow and Laerte is taken prisoner at the altar. After he serves his sentence of one year, Laerte moves to Europe and loses contact with the woman who was almost his wife.

Twenty years after the tragedy that tore him away from his cousin, Laerte, now a successful musician, sees a young girl in the audience at one of his concerts, who looks just like his long lost love. It is Luiza (Bruna Marquezine), the daughter of Helena, and Laerte’s rival, Virgílio, who still bears the scar on his face and on his soul from that fateful day.

Back in Brazil, Laerte sees Luiza again and, to Helena’s deep despair, becomes romantically involved with her. She is now married to Virgílio and she sees history repeat itself with her daughter’s love affair. Dormant feelings resurface and affect both her marriage and her relationship with her daughter. Defying everyone, Laerte and Luiza decide to stay together—a decision that causes conflict and turmoil all around them.

Cast

Júlia Lemmertz as Helena.

Bruna Marquezine as Helena / Luiza.

Gabriel Braga Nunes as Laerte.

Giovanna Antonelli as Clara.

Ratings

Awards and nominations

International Broadcasting

Globo distributed Em Família for 3 countries to date, with 75 chapters - almost half the original.^[6]

Exibição pelo mundo

Country	Channel	Title Location	Premiere	End	Weekly Schedule	Hour	Ref
Brazil	TV Globo	Em Família	3 February 2014	18 July 2014	Monday to Saturday	21:15	—
São Tomé and Príncipe	TVS	Em Família	10 February 2014	25 July 2014	Monday to Saturday	21:15	—
Portugal	SIC	Em Família	31 March 2014	21 November 2014	Monday to Saturday	18:45	[7]
Mexico	Azteca Uno	La Sombra de Helena	TBA				[8]
Costa Rica	Teletica	La Sombra de Helena	TBA				[9]

References