Flights of Fancy (El Lujo de Soñar)

FLIGHTS OF FANCY is the fish-out-of-water true story of one young man’s drive to realize the dream of a lifetime—to become a doctor—despite seemingly insurmountable odds. In the process, our hero, LALO, inspires TONY, his younger brother, to pursue his own dreams, which eventually leads him to become President of his beloved nation, El Salvador.

What makes Lalo’s story particularly cinematic is the fact that at its core, it delivers a universally compelling theme of the human struggle to thrive. In the end, FLIGHTS OF FANCY is a coming-of-age, rags-to-riches, psychological, character-driven drama with comedic overtones that is the embodiment of the American Dream.

BACKGROUND OF PROJECT:

In 2004, during Elías Antonio (“Tony”) Saca’s presidential campaign in El Salvador, he often spoke publicly about his debt of gratitude toward his older brother, Dr. Ricardo E. (“Lalo”) Saca, who had immigrated to the U.S. illegally and held down several jobs at a time for many years, in order to support his family back home.

The Spanish-language print and broadcast media in the U.S., interviewed Lalo extensively about his experiences as an immigrant and his amazing professional success, given the fact that he didn’t speak a word of English when he first arrived in Los Angeles. In fact, Lalo graduated from one of the nation’s top medical schools at University of California, Irvine, 11 years after arriving in the U.S., which means that he was merely 3 years behind those who were born and raised here and are native English speakers.

Lalo has completed his memoirs and has signed with a literary agent, who is in the process of shopping the book to publishers. Because of his fascinating life story and his connection to Tony, who is now the President of El Salvador, Lalo is now focused on making a film based on his life story. Independent producer, Diana Lesmez (producer of CULTURE CLASH IN AMERICCA, which was directed by Emilio Estevez), who has developed the adaptation, which has resulted in a highly polished screenplay, is producing the film. The script follows in the tradition of such acclaimed films as MARIA FULL OF GRACE and REAL WOMEN HAVE CURVES.

FLIGHTS OF FANCY has the makings of a Sundance “buzz movie” with crossover art house/independent market and Latino audience appeal. In addition, given its subject matter and Lalo’s relation to the current President of El Salvador, FLIGHTS OF FANCY benefits from built-in high-profile media attention both in the U.S., as well as throughout Latin America.

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The budget is $3.5 million. Financing is being raised from equity investors, strategic industry partnerships, foreign pre-sales, product integration arrangements, tax incentives/rebates programs, and distribution deals. (read less)

FLIGHTS OF FANCY is the fish-out-of-water true story of one young man’s drive to realize the dream of a lifetime—to become a doctor—despite seemingly insurmountable odds. In the process, our hero, LALO, inspires TONY, his younger brother, to pursue his own dreams, which eventually leads him to become President of his beloved nation, El Salvador.

What makes Lalo’s story particularly cinematic is the fact that at its core, it delivers a universally compelling theme of the human struggle to... (read more)