Ilka Pinheiro was a highly influential Brazilian voice actress and dubbing director, whose career spanned over six decades and left a lasting mark on the audiovisual industry in Brazil. Born Eva dos Santos Pinheiro in Curitiba on September 1, 1939, she began her artistic journey in the 1950s as a radio actress in Porto Alegre before moving to Rio de Janeiro in 1964 to pursue radio work. As the demand for dubbing grew with the expansion of television, her vocal talents led her to a new career. She was hired by the renowned Herbert Richers studio in the 1970s, where she became a seminal figure in establishing the standard for Brazilian dubbing.

While Pinheiro's work was vast and encompassed live-action films and series, she became particularly well-known for her numerous roles in animation. In the realm of anime, she is recognized for voicing the character Emeraldas, identified as Rainha Esmeraldas in the Portuguese dubbing, in the 1982 film Arcadia of My Youth (Capitão Harlock e a Nave Arcádia). Her versatility, however, extended across many genres and styles. She was the voice of iconic Western animated characters such as the Witch in He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, Maga Patalógica in DuckTales, and Wonder Woman in Super Friends. Her repertoire also included video game characters and roles in contemporary animations, such as Mirtes in DC League of Super-Pets and the elderly Sophie in a redubbing of Studio Ghibli's Howl's Moving Castle.

Beyond her on-screen performances, Ilka Pinheiro was a highly respected dubbing director, known for her technical rigor and artistic sensitivity. In this capacity, she helped shape the careers of many other professionals and contributed to the high quality for which Brazilian dubbing is known. A notable example of her mentorship was her role in casting a young Guilherme Briggs for his first animation role, a fact he publicly acknowledged upon her passing. Her directorial work also extended to live-action productions, such as the telenovela Rebelde.

Ilka Pinheiro passed away on November 20, 2025, at the age of 86, leaving behind a legacy as one of the foundational and most cherished figures in Brazilian dubbing.