We are making a documentary. Twelve years after reuniting with his birth family, one of the Disappeared Children of the Salvadoran Civil War is sharing a step in his journey to explore his identity.

Nelson/Roberto’s story starts in Central America during one of the bloodiest conflicts of the Cold War. While it deals with events that are larger-than-life and has twists you might expect to find only in a work of fiction, at its heart, it is about what makes us alike or connected.

We plan to make the doc feature length and to complete it over the next year. It will be filmed in two phases, which most likely will overlap a bit. First, Nelson/Roberto will conduct interviews with family and others about the war and events surrounding his disappearance, adoption, and reunion. Second, we will document a journey (or journeys) that allows Nelson/Roberto to experience people, places, or events important to his past. We have a few ideas for the journey(s), but also are leaving room for ideas to develop out of the interview phase. Then in editing, we will weave together the past and present for Nelson/Roberto to share a contemporary look at his life’s story.

Our Kickstarter goal was set to help us to conduct the interview phase of shooting by covering some setup, equipment, and travel expenses. We are opening our process to share as much of journey as we can while it happens, including live broadcasts of many interviews, a production journal with behind the scenes updates, Nelson’s photography, and whatever else we can come up with along the way. To reward supporters, we are offering our thanks, DVD’s of the documentary, and several additional ways to become personally involved with Nelson/Roberto’s journey. While financial support is important to tell the story in this way, first and foremost we hope that if Nelson/Roberto’s story moves you, you’ll to share it too.

Thanks and hope we cross paths along the journey!

-Nelson/Roberto and John