Movie tells story of adopted twin sisters
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Adopted twin sisters Samantha Futerman, left, and Anais Bordier, with their entrance cards at the 2015 South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Festival in Austin, Texas, on March 15. Their documentary film, “Twinster,” depicting the twins’ reunion after 25 years, premiered at the festival. / Courtesy of Kickstarte
By Jhoo Dong-chan
A documentary movie of the reunion of adopted twin sisters will be screened in Los Angeles this month.
The twins ― Anais Bordier, a French fashion design student living in London, and Samantha Futerman, an American actress living in Los Angeles ― participated in the film’s premiere at the 2015 South By Southwest (SXSW) Film Festival in Austin, Texas, last month.
The 90-minute documentary, “Twinster,” depicts the twins’ reunion and their changed lives. It received favorable reviews.
“Twinster” is expected to screen on April 25 at the Aratani Theatre in Los Angeles. Korean multiplex chain CGV in Los Angeles will start showing the film on April 28.
The twins’ story dates back to February 2013, when Bordier found a spooky coincidence in a YouTube video a friend sent to her. It featured Futerman, who looked like Bordier’s doppelganger.
Curious, Bordier googled Futerman, discovering that they both were born in Busan, Korea, on Nov. 19, 1987, and adopted soon after.
Bordier sent a message to Futerman via Facebook.
“At first glance, I saw only my own face staring back from Anais’ profile picture,” said Futerman on her online fundraising website, Kickstarter.
“After a few clicks and a personal message from Anais, I knew I was about to embark on a journey that no one else had ventured before.”
After extended interaction through social media, the two came to the conclusion that they are twins.
"We both share a twisted sense of humor, a love of cheese, despite lactose intolerance, and an apparent Napoleon complex," said Futerman.
They started a fundraising campaign via SNS to meet, get genetically tested and create a documentary about the process of finding out if they really are twins separated at birth.
Many people showed interest in the twins’ story and participated in the campaign to help them. It raised $43,839, surpassing their $30,000 goal within a month.
Thanks to their support, Bordier and Futerman finally met at Heathrow Airport in London, three months after the former sent the first Facebook message.
The twins said they were thrilled when they first met at the airport’s arrival gate.
“We were surprised by the resemblance,” Bordier said. “Samantha looked exactly like me.”
The twins then visited each other in Europe and the U.S., bridging the 25 years of separation.