The Countries We Love

Los Angeles, California | Film Short

Drama, Foreign Film

Priscila Zortea

1 Campaigns | California, United States

Green Light

This campaign raised $9,025 for production. Follow the filmmaker to receive future updates on this project.

165 supporters | followers

Enter the amount you would like to pledge

$

Our film explores the journey of 3 Brazilian immigrants following their dreams in the United States. It's a story about determined women who lift each other up when life adversities try to bring them down.

About The Project

  • The Story
  • Wishlist
  • Updates
  • The Team
  • Community

Mission Statement

Our cast and crew are formed by immigrants! And some Americans too! We don't discriminate. Our protagonists are 3 Brazilian women that represent completely different ethnic backgrounds within that country. This project is led by a female first-time writer and is all about inclusion.

The Story

PS: Versão Brasileira abaixo!

"The Countries We Love" is mixture of fiction and stories that happened to me, Priscila, and my friends. It follows the journey of 3 Brazilian women in the United States. They're determined and extremely resilient, but life puts obstacles on their way that makes them question their decisions. How many times can one knock on a locked door? How many times can one keep trying when things don't seem to get better? Follow their journey to find out if they got what they were looking for!

 

Jessica - She's a journalist that moves to the United States to become an international correspondent. She works at a news agency that is constantly denying her opportunities to grow and write about different subjects. She also faces immigration issues since her Visa is about to expire.

 

Nicole - A hopeful actress dreaming about working in American show business. She doesn't seem to find her space within the industry: not the right accent, not the right type, not to mention the fight of getting her Artist Visa accepted on the jobs she would like to audition for. 

 

Luciana - With a PhD in physics, she received the opportunity of becoming a researcher at an American university. All her immigration issues were taken care of, but Luciana fights to succeed as a female scientist in a male dominated field. 

 

 

Our lead actresses are Gabriela Duarte, Priscila Zortea and Kaanda Gontijo. Read more about them on the "Team" section!

 

I grew up with huge dreams and a big desire to live abroad one day. I was lucky enough to see that wish coming true in 2009 when I moved to the United States. A lot of what I've been experiencing ever since is what inspired me to write this film. It's not an easy road to live so far from your family to pursue your dreams, but it's an experience I wouldn't trade for anything! A couple of years ago, one of my best friends also moved to this country and she was nice enough to allow me to share her story on this film as well. 

When thinking about movies with immigrant characters, it seems to me that they are always doing something... not that nice. There are films about crossing borders illegally, getting married for Green Cards, working illegally, being part of a foreign mafia, foreign terrorists, and the list goes on. I can't seem to remember a lot of films that show immigrant characters who are well educated, who come here legally, who are hard workers, who do great things to contribute to the American society. So that's where my idea came from! I wish to show immigrants who went through all the right channels to be here and advance their careers, but unfortunately, that doesn't mean things will work out the way they imagined it. 

This is my first film, but, like the character I play on the film, I have a degree in Journalism and I’ve written plenty of stories all my life. But this one is the most meaningful to me so far! Thank you so much for collaborating with our project and I hope you enjoy the film!

- Priscila - 

 

“Os Países que amamos” é uma mistura de ficção e histórias que aconteceram comigo, Priscila, e com minhas amigas. O filme segue a trajetória de 3 mulheres brasileiras nos Estados Unidos. Elas são determinadas e extremamente resistentes, mas a vida coloca obstáculos no caminho delas que as faz questionar suas decisões. Quantas vezes podemos bater numa porta sempre trancada? Quantas vezes conseguimos continuar tentando quando as coisas não parecem melhorar? Siga a jornada delas pra descobrir se elas conseguiram o que foram buscar lá longe!

 

Jessica – Ela é uma jornalista que se mudou para os Estados Unidos para ser correspondente internacional. Ela trabalha em uma agência de notícias onde constantemente tem suas ideias negadas e não recebe oportunidades de crescer e escrever sobre assuntos diferentes. Ela também tem problemas de imigração, já que o seu visto está quase acabando.

 

Nicole – Uma esperançosa atriz que sonha em trabalhar no show business americano. Ela não parece encontrar seu espaço dentro dessa indústria: nunca tem o sotaque certo, ou não tem o visual certo, sem contar na briga pra conseguir que o visto de artista dela seja aceito nos trabalhos que ela realmente gostaria de conseguir.

 

Luciana – Com doutorado em Física, ela recebeu a oportunidade de se tornar pesquisadora em uma universidade americana. Todas as questões relacionadas a imigração foram resolvidas pra ela, mas a Luciana luta pra se destacar como uma cientista feminina em uma área dominada por homens.

As protagonistas do filme são Gabriela Duarte, Priscila Zortea e Kaanda Gontijo. Leia mais sobre elas na seção “Team”!

 

Eu cresci com sonhos gigantes e um grande desejo de morar fora do país um dia. Eu tive a sorte de ver esse meu desejo se tornar realidade em 2009 quando me mudei para os Estados Unidos. Muitas coisas que experienciei desde então são o que me inspiraram a escrever esse filme. Não é fácil viver tão longe da família pra ir atrás de sonhos, mas é uma experiencia que eu não trocaria! Há uns dois anos, uma das minhas melhores amigas também se mudou pra cá e ela foi generosa o suficiente pra me deixar compartilhar a história dele nesse filme também!

 

Quando eu penso em filmes que tem imigrantes como personagens, me parece que eles estão sempre fazendo... algo que não seja tao bom. Existem filmes sobre cruzar a fronteira ilegalmente, casar pra conseguir um Green Card, trabalhar ilegalmente, fazer parte de alguma máfia estrangeira, terroristas estrangeiros, e a lista continua. Eu não consigo lembrar de vários filmes que mostram personagens imigrantes que são bem-educados, que chegam aqui legalmente, que são trabalhadores, que fazem coisas pra contribuir com a sociedade americana. Foi daí que a minha ideia surgiu! Eu gostaria de mostrar imigrantes que passaram por todos os caminhos legais para estarem aqui e avançarem suas carreiras, mas que infelizmente, isso não significa que as coisas vão funcionar do jeito que eles imaginavam.

 

Esse é o primeiro roteiro que eu escrevo, mas, como a minha personagem no filme, também sou formada em Jornalismo e escrevi inúmeras histórias durante toda minha vida. Mas essa é a mais importante pra mim ate então! Muito obrigada por colaborar com o nosso projeto e espero que gostem do filme!

- Priscila - 

 

 

Wishlist

Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.

Cash Pledge

Costs $0

Book store, office, university...!!

Costs $4,000

This film has very specific locations needs so we must rent a few places!

The ones that make it happen!

Costs $2,000

We need crew members to operate camera, sound, lightning!

Fuel

Costs $1,000

Empty stomachs can't make films!!

Editing

Costs $1,500

Somebody needs to put the story together!

Sharing our Story

Costs $1,000

Some of our budget will be saved to submit the film to festivals!

In case the math was wrong

Costs $500

This money is for the things that don't go well and you need a way to fix it last minute!

About This Team

I met Gabriela in New York City years ago. We were both studying acting there and then life ended up bringing us both to Los Angeles. She was the first person I invited to be part of this film with me and she was extremely supportive since day one! She's playing the role of Nicole, who's also an actress. Gabi is such a dedicated artist, it's truly inspiring! She's been giving her all to reach her goals and recently she also became a producer graduated from UCLA! 

She's from Salvador, Bahia (that's in the North of Brazil!). Check her out on IMDB https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7229114/?ref_=nv_sr_2 or follow her @ggduarte 

Eu conheci a Gabriela em New York City anos atrás. As duas estudavam atuação por lá e a vida acabou trazendo as duas a Los Angeles. Ela foi a primeira pessoa que convidei a fazer parte desse projeto e ela apoiou a ideia desde o primeiro dia! Ela vai fazer o papel da Nicole, que também é atriz. A Gabi é uma artista extremamente dedicada, me inspira muito! Ela tem batalhado bastante pela sua carreira por aqui e recentemente ela se formou em produção pela UCLA! 

Ela é de Salvador, Bahia.

 

Here's a surprise: Kaanda is not an actress, she actually has a PhD in Human Movement Sciences and she works as a performance coach for dancers and athletes! So what made me invite her to play one of the lead roles on this film? Well, she has the heart of an artist and that's what matters the most to me. We used to dance ballet together in Porto Alegre many years ago. She brings a lot to the table! I thought her charisma would fit right in with me and Gabriela and make us a very diverse group of Brazilian women. I've seen her accomplishing so many things in her life, I can't wait to see her acting on a film for the first time!

She's from Minas Gerais, but also lived in Para, Rio de Janeiro, Fortaleza, Porto Alegre and now California! Basically every part of Brazil you can think of, she's lived there!

Aqui vai a surpresa: a Kaanda não é atriz, ela tem doutorado em Ciências do movimento humano e trabalha como preparadora física de bailarinos e atletas. Então o que me fez convidar ela pra ser uma das protagonistas do filme? Bom, ela tem o coração de um artista e pra mim isso é o mais importante. A gente dançava ballet juntas em Porto Alegre, muito tempo atrás. Ela traz muita coisa boa pra esse time! Eu achei que o carisma dela ia se encaixar perfeitamente comigo e com a Gabriela, fazendo um trio bem diverso de mulheres brasileiras. Eu já vi ela conquistar tantas coisas, mal posso esperar pra ver ela atuar pela primeira vez!

Ela é de Minas Gerais, mas também morou no Para, Rio de Janeiro, Fortaleza, Porto Alegre e agora, California! Quase todos os cantos do nosso país!

 

I was born in Casca, Rio Grande do Sul (that's in the South of Brazil!). When my dreams of becoming a ballet dancer didn't come true, I decided to go to school for Journalism because I always enjoyed writing (and maybe I  just wanted to be Carrie Bradshaw from Sex & The City). But after college, I realized I wasn't really happy, I had to go away and keep pursuing my art for at least a while longer. I moved to the United States in 2009, I went to school for acting in NYC, and after that, I was finally able to get a work Visa and start auditioning for theater and TV. Then, in 2015 I moved to Los Angeles because I was hired to be a dancer for LA KISS, a football team owned by Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons from KISS (it doesn't get cooler than that, sorry!). Since then I've been working on my craft as an actress and also creating my own work, like this film! https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6650122/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1

Eu nasci em Casca, Rio Grande do Sul. Quando meus sonhos de ser bailarina não viraram realidade, eu decidi estudar jornalismo porque sempre gostei muito de escrever (ou talvez porque eu queria ser a Carrie Bradshaw do programa de TV Sex & The City). Mas depois de me formar, percebi que não estava feliz e que precisava continuar com a minha arte por pelo menos mais um tempo. Eu me mudei para os Estados Unidos em 2009, estudei atuação em New York, e depois disso, eu finalmente consegui um visto de trabalho e comecei a fazer testes pra trabalhar em teatro e TV. Em 2015, fui contratada como dançarina para o time de futebol americano LA KISS, comandado por Paul Stanley e Gene Simmons da banda KISS (não tem como ficar mais legal do que isso, sinto muito!). Desde então eu tenho trabalhado pra aperfeiçoar meu trabalho como atriz e também desenvolver meus próprios projetos artísticos, como esse filme. 

 

We also have amazing supporting actors joining us!

 

Lynne Mannino - I watched her in a play last year and I was really impressed by her work! One day we casually met and I said I'd love to work with her one day. We did! This will be the second time already because she's one of my favorites! She'll be playing the Casting Director.

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1657104/?ref_=nv_sr_1

 

Charley Flyte - She's one of the most supportive human beings I know! Talented, joyful and all around a great person. We met in 2014 when we were NY actors visiting Los Angeles to decide if we'd like to move here or not. She'll be playing the casting assistant on this film! 

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3265439/?ref_=nv_sr_1

 

Robert Perkins - We were classmates at Anthony Meindl's Actors Workshop and his work and dedication always impressed me! Robert will be playing the scientist.

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5332190/?ref_=nv_sr_3

 

Mikey Spaulding - Nearly every Saturday night we both play pretend in this wondeful LA gem called The Pan Am Experience, where we take you back to the 70's in a PanAm 747 flight. Mikey is one of the highlights of the experience because of his hilarious interpreation of Hals, the German fashion show host. In our film, he'll play one of Jessica's coworkers, Josh. 

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8590686/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1

 

Lucas Zaffari - We come from the same part of Brazil and coincidentally we were both cast on a Halloween show in Los Angeles a few years ago. I'm really happy to have Lucas share his talents on this project! Check out his work on https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7362412/?ref_=nv_sr_1

 

We're still putting our crew together, but it'll be lead by the talented Brazilian director of Photography Pablo Chassereaux! He has worked extensively on the field and was highly recommended to me. I'm very happy he'll help bring my vision to life! Check out his previous work here https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4480984/?ref_=nv_sr_1

 

Keep checking this page for updates on cast and crew! 

 

- Priscila - 

 

 

Current Team

Supporters

Followers

Incentives