Feature Documentary · 90 Min · English / Spanish
CIRCUMDRIVING
When home burns down, the world becomes home.
Produced by Alex Bäcker & Cactus Cine · Written by Rob Kutner · Directed by Agustín Vidal
LOG LINE
After a devastating wildfire destroys their world, a couple and their rescued dog embark on a record-breaking 112,000-kilometer expedition across Eurasia to discover if home is a place you build, or a way of life.
The First Complete Land Circumnavigation of Eurasia
714
DAYS ON THE ROAD
112,000
KILOMETERS
70+
COUNTRIES
SYNOPSIS
On January 7, 2025, Alex Bäcker is at a fire festival in Japan when his California house burns to the ground. Months earlier, his partner Bet had her U.S. visa rejected for the third time. Two people with nowhere left to go — and a Siberian husky who understood the plan better than anyone — arrive at a single decision: if the world won't let them stay, they'll move first.
On February 2, 2026, they leave Rome. Destination: every driveable corner of Eurasia. 112,000 km. 75 countries. Two years. No fixed address.
What follows is not a travel film. It's a stress test. Borders, breakdowns, a war zone, a DNA test that redraws everything Bet thought she knew about herself.
Shadow watches all of it from the back seat. Through his own camera and a voiceover nobody asked for, he offers the film's third perspective — unimpressed by cathedrals, suspicious of border guards, deeply committed to any situation involving food.
More than adventure.
A film about the interior journey — and one dog's running commentary on the whole thing.
THE PROTAGONISTS
BET BANDERA
Protagonist · Navigator · Mother
— Worked in male-dominated fields, underpaid and overlooked. U.S. visa rejected three times — the trip was born from that refusal. Left her children to prove a different life is possible. In Milan, a DNA test revealed African, Sephardic and indigenous roots.
Arc: from reacting to rejection → to authoring her own life.
ALEX BÄCKER
Co-Protagonist · Neuroscientist · Explorer
— Ph.D. in Computational Neuroscience, MIT graduate, founded companies named Most Innovative in the USA. 3rd cousin of Albert Einstein — whose work enabled GPS. His California house burned on Jan 7, 2025. As a neuroscientist, he believes nomadism is humanity's natural state — and this journey is his proof.
Arc: from loss and displacement → to transformation.
SHADOW
The Third Protagonist
Rescued
Found next to his deceased companion. The first dog to attempt a full Eurasian circumdrive.
ShadowCam
POV footage at dog-eye-level. A distinct visual language that creates irreplaceable texture and humor.
Voice
Scripted internal monologue (Rob Kutner) provides comic contrast to human drama. 'At least when I run, I get a treat.'
NARRATIVE STRUCTURE
Feature Documentary · ~90 minutes · English Language
PROLOGUE
What pushed them to leave
- ▸Bet's visa rejected 3× — the journey is born from refusal
- ▸Alex's house burns while he's at a fire festival in Japan
- ▸The decision: if not America, then all of Eurasia
ACT ONE
The Choice · Italy → Scandinavia
- ▸Departure from Rome via the Via Appia
- ▸Family opposition. Social judgment.
- ▸Bet's first week away from her children
- ▸End: she consciously chooses authorship over expectation
ACT TWO
Survival · Russia · Siberia · Asia
- ▸'You won't make it out of Siberia alive' — the nemesis
- ▸War context. North American license plates.
- ▸Isolation strips performance. Relationship tested.
- ▸Halle, Germany: Stolperstein for Alex's grandfather
ACT THREE
Return · Middle East → India → Rome
- ▸Socotra — the 'Galápagos of the Arabian Sea'
- ▸Bet's children join in Scandinavia / UK
- ▸The Russian nemesis question is answered
- ▸Return to Rome: the circle closes
KEY DRAMATIC BEATS
Bet discovers her African, Sephardic, and indigenous roots in an intimate conversation.
Alex attends a fire festival in Japan the same night his California home burns. The man with no home goes looking for home in the world.
Alex's mother and brother join in Germany to lay a memorial stone for his grandfather. Jewish families once crossed borders fleeing fear — now they cross them by choice.
An expert overlander tells them bluntly: 'You won't make it out of Siberia alive.' A Hitchcock device planted early — the audience dreads Russia for 50 minutes.
Her children join the trip in the UK or Scandinavia. The film's emotional fulcrum: legacy is not presence — it's example.
The 'Galápagos of the Arabian Sea.' Almost no overland expedition reaches it. If they do, this is the film's climax of adventure and risk.
THE ROUTE
The most geographically complete circumnavigation ever attempted
Rome → Spain → France → UK & Ireland via Channel Tunnel
Every fjord. Every coastal km. North Cape: 71°10' N — northernmost driveable point in Europe.
Arctic Russia + 14,000 km across Siberia. The film's dramatic core.
Japan, China, Philippines, Indonesia — 4 maritime shipments.
Cape Comorin: 8°05' N — southernmost tip of India. Max latitudinal span: 63°.
Strait of Hormuz · Suez Canal · Socotra (the 'Galápagos of the Arabian Sea')
TOTAL: 112,000 km · 4 Oceans · 31 Seas · 70–75 Countries · Feb 2026 → Feb 2028
THEMES
Reinvention After Loss
A burned house. A stolen company. A life designed by others. What remains when everything permanent disappears?
Freedom of Movement
A visa rejection gave birth to a 75-country journey. Jewish families once fled borders in fear — now they cross them by choice.
Legacy vs. Presence
Is the best thing a parent can leave their children a diary of every school play — or proof that a different life is possible?
Home as Motion
Is the human animal happier moving or standing still? The road becomes the answer.
History Beneath Our Feet
Cathedrals, mummies, Stolpersteine, ancient currencies. Every city asks: what actually lasts?
The Permission to Leave
Two people who were told 'no' by systems, borders, and family — and went anyway.
More than adventure. A film about the interior journey.
WHY THIS FILM. WHY NOW.
A Genuine Historic First
No one has completed a full land circumnavigation of Eurasia. The film documents something happening for the first time in human history.
It's Already Happening
Departure was February 2, 2026. Real footage exists from Italy, France, and the Cathar country. This is not a pitch for something yet to begin.
Emmy-Winning Writing Attached
Rob Kutner — 5 Emmys, The Daily Show, Conan — is already collaborating on narrative structure.
Character-First, Not Landscape-First
This is not a geography documentary. It is a film about two people deciding what kind of life to live — against the backdrop of 70 countries.
Shadow as Differentiator
A Siberian Husky co-protagonist with ShadowCam POV and a scripted inner monologue provides a visual and comedic layer unlike anything in the festival circuit.
Global Reach, Universal Themes
Reinvention. Migration. Family. Freedom. The questions of everyone who has ever felt trapped by the life they were handed.
STATUS & OPPORTUNITY
Where we are today:
- ✓ Expedition departed Rome, February 2, 2026
- ✓ Footage collected: Italy, France, Cathar country, Nice, Marseille
- ✓ Script development with Rob Kutner — underway
- ✓ Narrative structure defined · Teaser in production
- ○ Pre-sales: H2 2026 · Festival submissions: H1 2028
We are looking for:
- •Co-production partners · European broadcasters (ARTE, TV5, BBC, Al Jazeera)
- •International documentary distributors
- •Development funding for key production segments
- •Branded integration · Mobility, connectivity, technology, outdoor
Platform Sales
Disney+ Docs, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video, ARTE, BBC, Al Jazeera, DW Documentary · Delivery 2028
Festival Circuit
IDFA, Sundance, Hot Docs, Tribeca, BAFICI · Emmy-winning writer + historic 'first' status
Pre-Sales & Co-Productions
European public TV · Ibero-American framework (Argentina + Spain) · Cactus Cine distributor contacts
Branded Content
Subaru, Starlink, Apple, Garmin, DJI · Integration is organic — the car, connectivity and cameras ARE the story