For Albanian-American filmmaker Anisa Selenica, storytelling is personal—and powerful.

Her debut feature-length documentary, “A Journey to Freedom,” traces her family’s harrowing escape from Communist Albania and honors the resilience of a generation that endured decades under dictatorship.

What began as a 25-minute student film back in 2016 has grown into something far more ambitious: a living record of survival, sacrifice, and identity.

This film goes beyond honoring my family’s legacy. It sheds light on a chapter of world history too often overlooked: the lived experiences of ordinary people under a repressive regime.

Now living in Chicago and working with ABC7, Selenica is part of a new wave of Albanian-Americans using media and storytelling to preserve and amplify our community’s history.

Through personal interviews, archival footage, and intimate narration, the film offers a powerful reminder of what it means to fight for freedom—and why those stories must be told.

Selenica is currently fundraising to complete post-production. To support her film “A Journey to Freedom”, visit her official campaign page.