 In the 1940s, a young Oscar Niemeyer designed the Pampulha Neighbourhood to great acclaim, a commission he got thanks to then-mayor and soon-to-be-president Juscelino Kubitschek.These two men are largely responsible for the wide avenues, large lakes, parks and jutting skylines that characterize the city today.A 1949 American government film favorably reviewed the planning and building of the city.