Salsa singer Tony Succar’s music documentary Más de Mi will kick off the Panamanian International Film Festival in Los Angeles, taking place Oct. 8 through 10 at Hollywood’s Raleigh Studios.

The documentary, directed and produced by Succar himself, chronicles his journey from his humble beginnings as an unknown indie artist, recording in his parents’ garage, to his winning one of the most prestigious honors in Latin music. In 2019 Succar was nominated for four Latin Grammys for his record Mas de Mi, winning for Best Salsa Album and as Producer of the Year. 

The doc Más de Mi is part of the four-day festival that aims to spotlight the emerging film industry in Panama and create exchanges and networking opportunities with the film industry in the U.S. This is the fest’s seventh annual edition.

Born in Lima, Peru, Succar immigrated with his family to the United States when he was two years of age. Music runs in Succar’s family. His father Antonio Succar is a pianist and his mother Mimy Succar is a singer. Also, his paternal great-grandparents are Mexican composer Lauro Uranga and Spanish flamenco dancer Rosa Rodríguez Valero. His maternal Japanese-Peruvian great-grandparents also sang and played musical instruments. 

When he was age 3, Succar reportedly started playing the Peruvian cajon with his parents’ group in private and business events around Miami. The box-shaped percussion instrument is original from his home country. 

After earning college degrees in music, Succar took over his family’s band. 

Más de Mi is Succar’s second studio album. The first one was Unity: The Latin Tribute to Michael Jackson, a salsa take on the King of Pop’s biggest hits that Succar produced. This album featured Tito Nieves, La India, Kevin Ceballo, Michael Stuart, Jon Secada, Jennifer Peña, Jean Rodríguez and Obie Bermúdez. Succar is also featured in all the album tracks. He also worked as a producer of a music film inspired by the album, capturing a musical tribute to Jackson by over 40 musicians and artists from around in performances in various cities.

That makes Más de Mi  Succar’s second film production.

“The purpose of Más de Mi is to inspire people to follow their dreams despite the obstacles and to never give up,” says the singer about his movie. The salsa star is expected to attend both the festival’s red carpet and his film’s screening on Oct. 8, which will be followed by a question-and-answer session and a reception.

Also featured at the Panamanian International Film Festival in Los Angeles are Blursday, a dramatic film by director Sergio Guerrero Garzafox, and Covid 19 Sins & Virtues, produced and directed by various Latino filmmakers in lockdown during the pandemic, including Yeniffer M. Behrens, Mauricio Mendoza, Oscar Torre, Hugo Garcia, Caroline Brethenoux, Hernan de Becky, Cesar Gamino, Juan Gil, Marabina James, Miguel Paredes, Shanay Patalano, Jesus Schettino and Alex Toedtli Mera.

The fest will also present a Panamanian shorts program.

For more information, visit http://piffla.com.