Oscar and Emmy Award-winning American director Daniel Junge (“Saving Faith”) is executive producing a new documentary about Panamanian Abner Benaim (“Invasion”, “Plaza Cathedral”), who won three Academy Awards to represent Panama.
The as-yet-untitled documentary follows Panamanian Jaime Alemán, a lawyer, diplomat, businessman, and one of the world’s most accomplished travelers.
Aleman is the first human to complete the Triple Grand Slam of travel: visiting all 193 United Nations-recognized countries, trekking to the North and South Poles, and traveling to space. He flew on Blue Origin’s New Shepard NS-32 suborbital mission last year, becoming the first Panamanian to reach space. Now 72 years old, he has been traveling since he was 18 years old.
Jaime Aleman, presented by Blue Origin
Junge, who last worked with Benaim in the 2026 documentary Tropical Paradise, expressed his pleasure to work with Benaim again. “Jaime Aleman is a larger-than-life character, and his extraordinary journey provides a fascinating glimpse into what happens when the passion for exploring the world (and beyond) reaches its limits,” he said. “Tropical Paradise” won the Audience Award at the Panama Film Festival last April.
Director Benaim said: “At first glance, this is the story of an extraordinary journey: one man, all 193 countries, the polar regions, space, and the journey still to come. But for me, it’s just a ride. The real journey lies within. It’s about Jaime’s spirit, his weaknesses, his fears (and how he overcomes them). As we follow Jamie around the world, we also ask the universal question of what gives purpose in life. ”
Benaim and his crew follow Aleman as he sets out on his most extraordinary expedition yet. It’s a journey to one of the most uninhabited places on Earth, Tristan da Cunha, which can be reached in a five-day voyage across rough seas.
“We have already shot in the Azores, Brazil, Toronto and Panama, and will soon be shooting in Bangkok, Bhutan and Pakistan,” Benaim told Variety, adding that a trip to Tristan da Cunha, South Africa, about 1,500 miles west of Cape Town, is scheduled for next April.
Benaim said Aleman also aims to visit the coldest and hottest places on Earth, Oymyakon and Death Valley, respectively. “In parallel, their daughter Sophie has also conquered 193 countries, and Jaime is also supporting her efforts. If she achieves that, they will become the first father-daughter team in history to visit all 193 countries.”
At its heart, the documentary, produced by Benaim’s Apertura Films, aims to combine large-scale expedition filmmaking with intimate access to its subjects, offering both a visually ambitious adventure and a philosophical portrait of a man who refuses to believe that any journey can truly be completed.
Benaim and Jaime Aleman crew, courtesy of Apertura Films
