Expat Documentary Film

[steveinbsas]

I agree, change the title -- after 5+ years living here, I can assure you that Argentines consider themselves part of America as well.

One of my favorite comedies is Albert Brooks' "Lost in America."

Great scenes filmed in Arizona and Nevada. I don't remember seeing BA, even in the long shots.

Can anyone think of any Argentine films with the word "America" in the title?

Here is an interesting article that touches on the subject:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/filmblog/2008/nov/03/american-film-presidential-election

Note that the author does not challenge the fact that American filmmakers use the term in their film titles. Nor does the author refer to any other countries in the western hemisphere.

Does anyone have any doubts as to which country on earth is referred to in "L'americain" (a FRENCH film)?

Here is a clip featuring my high school girlfriend, Shelley Whittingham: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mO4GeWduPU

 

[wineguy999]

I would be interested in participating - send me a private message.

 

[jayjane]

We are in the US and will be moving to Argentina. PM me if you have questions for us. the project sounds interesting. I would say that we are approaching this move with caution in mind. It is not reasonable to think Argentina is an easier place to live or has greater economic possibilities. We expect the challenges to be greater in many areas of life. However, we have our own reasons for a move.

 

[oksanache]

I agree with those who point out the fact that many expats who came abut 8 to 6 years ago are leaving now. Having done a lot of real estate, I see a bunch of luxury properties bought in those days for next to nothing, remodelled for next to nothing as well compared to labour costs back home, are for sale now. The dream have had too many cracks, Argentina is not the same they had come to in the first place. Buenos Airs was cheap, quite safe and happy back then, it is expansive and sad, people are aggressive and nervous, not to mention the feeling of insecurity on empty streets that used to be full of people going out at any time of the night. The expats (not only North Americans) are leaving, again, to look for a better life for themselves and their families, who can blame them? I met a lot of Europeans who are selling their homes in Paleermo, North Americans, heading back to the US, singing "God Bless America" lke Homer Simpson after his escapade to Cuba. The grass is always greener some place, while people have the drive to look for the greener grass, they will be looking for it. It will be awhile, it seems, before Argentina looks attractive for new immigrants, but I sincerely hope, it will happen again some time.

 

[windy]

I read the other day of record number of US Families that can not put enough food on the table as the economy crumbles around them.
I also read that 100,000 Irish people mainly young and educated will leave Irelands devastated economic turmoil behide. Heading for other countrys. Mainly Canada and Austrailia but quite a few have turned up here. The fact is people are leaving the US. It was the land of opportunity and perhaps it will be again ,but it is not now.
Good luck with the documentary

 

[MizzMarr]

I don't think anybody is disputing that America (and sorry, I know it's an issue of contention, but the United States of America is the only *country* that has America in it's name, I think the title "Leaving America" is fine, and people can infer and will understand that it's the country and not the continent that is being referred to) and her glory days are over, unlikely ever to return and certainly not in the near future. The thing that people are attaching to (myself included) is the director's assertion that Argentina is an economic bright spot. It definitely isn't.

I'd potentially be willing to take part in the documentary as well, but am mostly curious whether the director et. al. are willing to revamp their vision of what the movie's story is supposed to be in light of the reality that they find when they start talking to real people who LIVE here and have lived here (not those who have just moved and especially not those planning to move... wait for the honeymoon period to be over). Best of luck, regardless!

 

[Vasco]

I usually just lurk on this forum, but I feel like throwing my 2 cents in here.

The film makers appear to have not done their research properly. The description of what this documentary is about does not match with the reality of what is going on in this country, as many here have pointed out. If there is an "economic bright spot" in Argentina, it is certainly not caused by American expats, but rather by the thousands of hard-working Paraguayan and Bolivian immigrants who are doing the tough jobs that need to be done.

I just spent 8 years in SE Asia before coming here. If you want to see a country or region that meets the description of what you hope to shoot, you should go to Hong Kong or Shanghai or Singapore or Kuala Lumpur or even Ho Chi Minh or Jakarta or Taipei or any one of dozens and dozens of cities in Asia.

I was born in Latin America (in Costa Rica), and I have a soft spot for this region. I've come back from Asia because I wanted to give my kids the opportunity to live in a Spanish speaking country, not because Buenos Aires is the hub of South America's opportunities. There are countries that are surging ahead, like Chile, Colombia and Brazil. But Argentina is not one of them, and this film is going to suffer tremendously because it will lack authenticity if you stick to the premise you have proposed.

 

[Ashley]

I agree with Vasco...

This sounds like a premise that could've worked a few of years ago during the actual "wave of immigration" but with so many expats going back home, is it really so relevant now?? With all due respect, it sounds like a bit of an outdated concept to me, and yes, perhaps a little more research (of the up to date kind) should be done.
It would though be interesting to interview some of the longer term expats here and find out how they're doing "several years later", how they've coped with hyper-inflation, whether they plan on returning to the states, etc (rather than focus on the out-dated rosy picture as outlined in the brief)... It would also be interesting to get a broad spectrum of interviewees - retirees, investors, expats who work online, expats who have local jobs.
Not being from the US, I'm afraid I can't volunteer but it'd be great to see a real, warts-and-all doc and not something akin to those "buying a property abroad"-type shows

 

[steveinbsas]

If on the off chance this is real then I apologize, however I am still doubting it is. The whole premise that thousands of people in their 20's and 30's are heading to Argentina today for better economic prospects is absurd. If there is truly a film-maker documenting this then he is wasting both his time and money. The reality today is that with the high inflation here there have been many more people leaving for home than have been arriving.

I don't think that there are more than a few dozen of 20-30 somethings moving to Argentina from the US on an annual basis. Still, there is probably a great story here about those who do continue to move here (especially to teach English) without ever having visited and find themselves in a strange country with little work and a lot of hassles just living day to day and trying to stay "legal" here. (I'm wearing my director's/screenwriter's shades.)

Nonetheless, there are at least a few dozen of us who moved to BA five to ten years ago and plan to stay. Thousands or tens of thousands? I really doubt it. (I took off the glasses so you all could see the wink.)

 

[CapnRick]

Saludos: There's a lot of 20s-30s aged ex-banker expats staying in hotels/pensiones/short term rentals in BsAs and living off the US dollar income from renting out their Manhatten apartment for 5000 dollars a month. I think Playboy did an article on them. They're trying to live inexpensively while seeking banking jobs internationally.

Christina has been pushing for a more ArgenZuela approach to letting US citizens emigrate. The restrictions are now much more stringent for staying here as a tourist, or immigrating with Permanent Residency without being married to an Argentine citizen. I have heard comments to indicate that even those who qualify for a residency program NOT involving marriage are experiencing a s-l-o-w-d-o-w-n in processing their applications.

I came here because my wife is an Argentine citizen, and we own our apartment outright 3 blocks from Atlantic beaches... something a lot tougher to do in the USA. I love Mar del Plata and miss it when I'm gone. We are both fluent in Spanish. Our kids are grown and live in the USA, helping us with our business there. Most of our income is dollar income that we access via ATMs. I find it hard to believe that a peso income for someone fresh from the USA without fluent Spanish and/or native family members can allow them to survive here more than a year or two. They... almost 100%... leave shortly after their life savings are spent. There are some exceptions, and I hope they speak up to tell their stories.

Good luck with your project... I see some serious benefits on portraying the challenges involved in leaving the USA for a life in another country. I look forward to seeing the heart warming stories that prove me wrong.

Suerte -CapnRick