Oscar, Emmy-Winning Director Daniel Junge Boards Documentary by Panama’s Abner Benaim (EXCLUSIVE)
Oscar and Emmy winning U.S. director Daniel Junge (“Saving Face”) is executive producing the latest documentary from Panama’s Abner Benaim (“Invasion” “Plaza Catedral”) who has represented Panama three times at the Academy Awards.
Still untitled, the documentary follows Panamanian Jaime Alemán, a lawyer, diplomat, businessman and one of the world’s most accomplished travelers.
Alemán is the first human in history to have visited all 193 countries recognized by the United Nations. He has reached both the North and South Poles and was the first Panamanian to travel into space when he flew on Blue Origin’s New Shepard NS-32 suborbital mission last year. Now 72, he´s been travelling since he was 18.
Junge, who last collaborated with Benaim on his 2026 docu “Tropical Paradise,” expressed delight to be working with Benaim again. “Jaime Alemán is a larger-than-life character, and his extraordinary journey offers a fascinating glimpse into what happens when a passion for exploring the world (and beyond) is taken to its ultimate extreme,” he said. “Tropical Paradise” won the Audience Award at the Panama Film Festival last April.
Added Benaim: “At first glance, it’s an extraordinary travel story: one man, all 193 countries, the poles, space and the journeys still to come. But for me, that’s just the vehicle. The real journey is inward. It’s about Jaime’s psyche, his vulnerability, his fears (and how he overcomes them), and what drives someone to keep moving. Because the story is still unfolding, the filmmaking itself becomes part of that search. As we follow Jaime around the world, we’re also asking a universal question: what gives a life purpose?”
Benaim and his crew will follow Aleman as he sets out on what may be his most extraordinary expedition yet: a journey to one of the most remote inhabited places on Earth, Tristan Da Cunha, which can be reached on a five-day voyage over rough seas.
“We already shot in the Azores, Brazil, Toronto and Panama, and will be shooting shortly in Bangkok, Bhutan and Pakistan,” Benaim told Variety who added that the trip to Tristan da Cunha, which lies about 1,500 miles west of Cape Town, South Africa, is slated for April next year.
Alemán is also aiming to visit the coldest and hottest places on earth, Oymyakon and Death Valley, respectively, according to Benaim. “In parallel, his daughter Sofi is going after the 193 countries, and Jaime is supporting her efforts. When she finishes them, they will be the first father/daughter team in history to have been to all 193 countries.”
In essence, the docu, produced by Benaim’s Apertura Films, aims to combine large-scale expedition filmmaking with intimate access to its subject, offering both a visually ambitious adventure and a philosophical portrait of a man who refuses to believe that any journey is ever truly complete.
Still untitled, the documentary follows Panamanian Jaime Alemán, a lawyer, diplomat, businessman and one of the world’s most accomplished travelers.
Alemán is the first human in history to have visited all 193 countries recognized by the United Nations. He has reached both the North and South Poles and was the first Panamanian to travel into space when he flew on Blue Origin’s New Shepard NS-32 suborbital mission last year. Now 72, he´s been travelling since he was 18.
Junge, who last collaborated with Benaim on his 2026 docu “Tropical Paradise,” expressed delight to be working with Benaim again. “Jaime Alemán is a larger-than-life character, and his extraordinary journey offers a fascinating glimpse into what happens when a passion for exploring the world (and beyond) is taken to its ultimate extreme,” he said. “Tropical Paradise” won the Audience Award at the Panama Film Festival last April.
Added Benaim: “At first glance, it’s an extraordinary travel story: one man, all 193 countries, the poles, space and the journeys still to come. But for me, that’s just the vehicle. The real journey is inward. It’s about Jaime’s psyche, his vulnerability, his fears (and how he overcomes them), and what drives someone to keep moving. Because the story is still unfolding, the filmmaking itself becomes part of that search. As we follow Jaime around the world, we’re also asking a universal question: what gives a life purpose?”
Benaim and his crew will follow Aleman as he sets out on what may be his most extraordinary expedition yet: a journey to one of the most remote inhabited places on Earth, Tristan Da Cunha, which can be reached on a five-day voyage over rough seas.
“We already shot in the Azores, Brazil, Toronto and Panama, and will be shooting shortly in Bangkok, Bhutan and Pakistan,” Benaim told Variety who added that the trip to Tristan da Cunha, which lies about 1,500 miles west of Cape Town, South Africa, is slated for April next year.
Alemán is also aiming to visit the coldest and hottest places on earth, Oymyakon and Death Valley, respectively, according to Benaim. “In parallel, his daughter Sofi is going after the 193 countries, and Jaime is supporting her efforts. When she finishes them, they will be the first father/daughter team in history to have been to all 193 countries.”
In essence, the docu, produced by Benaim’s Apertura Films, aims to combine large-scale expedition filmmaking with intimate access to its subject, offering both a visually ambitious adventure and a philosophical portrait of a man who refuses to believe that any journey is ever truly complete.