Portuguese 
English 
Spanish 
5 min of reading 
0 comments 
Videolocadora Mania Vídeo, in Xanxerê, in Western Santa Catarina, was inaugurated in 1982 and registered over 20,000 registered customers during its golden age. Now, ten years after its closure, businessman Fabio Moschetta has decided to donate the entire collection on May 30th and 31st.
Picking up the car on a Friday night, walking through the aisles of a video rental store, and competing with other customers for the week’s new releases has become a distant memory for many people who lived through the 90s and early 2000s. In Xanxerê, in Western Santa Catarina, this memory is about to get an unexpected final chapter: the old Mania Vídeo will be donating approximately 10,000 DVDs from its collection for free.
The event will take place on May 30th and 31st, starting at 1 PM, at Rua José Bonifácio, 33, in the center of Xanxerê. The donation is being organized by businessman Fabio Moschetta, son of one of the rental store’s founders. There will be no distribution of numbered tickets, and films cannot be reserved; they can only be chosen on-site by visitors.
How one of Santa Catarina’s largest video rental stores was born
The history of Mania Vídeo began in 1982. The rental store was created by Fabio Moschetta’s father along with other partners, who later left the business. The collection started small and was based on VHS tapes, the dominant format of the time.
-
11,000-year-old indigenous civilization discovered in Canada, with permanent fire pits, stone tools, and bison remains, could change theories about the history of North America.
-
Grey seal pups were appearing with terrifying marks on Sable Island, and after decades of speculation about sharks and boat propellers, scientists discovered that the danger came from where it was least expected: adult males of their own species during the breeding season.
-
Intense sound of cicadas reveals curious behavior of the species and explains why this sound dominates the hottest days.
-
Meal voucher will be accepted on any card machine: new PAT rule promises to turn the game around for 22 million workers by November 2026
Over the years, the establishment underwent several changes of address within Xanxerê. Each move expanded the space and the catalog available to customers.
In 2001, Mania Vídeo moved into what would become its last address, a store with almost 400 square meters. This physical expansion transformed the establishment into a regional benchmark and, according to Fabio himself, the largest video rental store in Santa Catarina for many years.
The rental store’s peak in the 90s and early 2000s
The numbers from Mania Vídeo’s peak illustrate the significance of being a video rental store customer back then. There were over 20,000 registered people, a number that rivals the current population of entire cities in inland Santa Catarina.
Weekend traffic was impressive. The rental store would hand out up to 2,000 films in a single weekend, with an average of 700 to 1,000 titles on Saturdays alone.
More than just a business, the place served as a meeting point. Families and groups of friends would cross paths between the shelves, discuss new releases, ask the attendant for recommendations, and head home with their weekend plans set in their bags.
Why the DVD donation was decided now
The idea to donate the collection arose from a combination of practical necessity and personal reflection. Fabio needed to free up the space where the DVDs were stored in his current company.
In parallel, personal changes led him to reflect on letting go and what makes sense to keep stored for decades. “Some particular events drew attention to letting go of old things, and the need to organize this storage space in my company were the starting point for this DVD donation movement,” explained the businessman.
Even after the end of commercial operations, the video rental store remained alive in the businessman’s memory. He recounts having dreamed several times, over a decade, that he was still serving customers at the Mania Vídeo counter. The donation, he says, is also a symbolic way to close this cycle.
Social media repercussion surprised the businessman
When Fabio announced the donation on his social media, the post gained much wider reach than he expected. The video went viral and attracted messages from cinephiles from various parts of the country.
The manifestations came from neighboring cities, from the Santa Catarina coast, from Rio Grande do Sul, from Paraná, from São Paulo and even from Rio de Janeiro. Many sent messages curious about the possibility of receiving films by mail, which is not foreseen in the action.
Despite the distance, some interested parties have already confirmed travel to Xanxerê just to participate. There are people coming from Florianópolis and Caxias do Sul, in Rio Grande do Sul, in search of a piece of this history.
Why the video rental store model became unfeasible
The businessman has no illusions about the possibility of reopening the business. He recognizes that habits have changed profoundly and that physical film rental has ceased to make economic sense in cities outside major centers.
“However, times change, consumer preferences also change, and I understand that outside of large cities it is difficult to make a video rental store viable,” said Fabio. The phrase summarizes the acceptance of a model that was buried by streaming, downloads, social media, and new audiovisual consumption habits.
Still, nostalgia remains strong among those who lived through the era of crowded shelves. For these people, the DVD donation functions as a reunion with an affective routine that the digital age retired.
How to participate in the donation in Xanxerê
Those who want to secure films from the collection must attend the location in person. The event is scheduled for May 30th and 31st, starting at 1 PM, at Rua José Bonifácio, 33, in the Center of Xanxerê, in Western Santa Catarina.
There will be no distribution of passwords, arrival order does not guarantee priority, and no film can be reserved in advance. The businessman also informed that shipping by post to other regions will not be available.
Between 8,000 and 10,000 DVDs will be organized for free choice. The organizer’s expectation is to distribute as many titles as possible to other cinema enthusiasts.
The donation promoted in Xanxerê reopens a conversation that many people had already stored in the drawer of memory. Before the streaming era, going to a video rental store was an outing in itself, with careful selection, anticipation, and even frustration when the movie of the moment was already fully rented.
And you, what were your favorite video rental stores? Do you remember the last movie you rented before they closed? Do you believe there would still be room for this business model in any city in the country? Leave your comment, share your story, and tag a friend who shared those Friday movie nights at home with you.
Be the first to react!