Misha Миша

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“ The tragic story of the greatest soccer player that most have never heard of.”

Mikhail “Misha” An grew up on a collective farm in Uzbekistan and showed early brilliance on the soccer field as a member of the local team Pakhtakor. An was a member of the Koryo Saram; Koreans from the Far East of Russia who were persecuted by Joseph Stalin’s regime. In Uzbekistan no soccer player is held in higher regard.. Eventually, he debuted in the Soviet Top League at age 19. By age 22 he was a star.

He would do what great soccer players do: create space. The young midfielder would grab fleeting opportunities and, in the end, score goals. He was a playmaker and a leader. He was gifted with extraordinary field vision.. He led his team Pakhtakor to new heights, starred on Soviet national teams and was named to the Russian annual list of “33” – the best players in the league. In 1979, An was killed in a tragic mid-airplane collision along with all his teammates. Despite dying at only age 27, An left an enduring legacy, he had transcended barriers and prejudices to become one of the most beloved players in his team’s history and inspire generations to come. The space he created endures.

This documentary captures the tragic story of Mikhail An through the lens of his peers, family, friends, and others who were close to him. This film was shot on location in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Greece, and the United States.

Director’s Bio

Brian Song is a NY based filmmaker of Korean descent. Born in Philadelphia, he is a proud graduate of Florida State University, where he majored in Communications. Brian has recently completed his first feature documentary "Destiny Deferred: The Mikhail An Story," a tragic story about Mikhail An, an Uzbek football player of Korean descent. Brian loves to explore Korean Diaspora stories and is currently developing a documentary about Korean-Japanese Baseball player Isao Harimoto, the only person to play professional baseball who survived the atomic bomb in Hiroshima. He is also an avid world traveller and currently (as his day job) is the executive producer of his production company Good One Inc, where he works with such brands as Proctor & Gamble, Humira, truTV, MGM Resorts, Subway, Garnier, etc.