'Twinsters,' about N.J. adoptee's discovery of identical twin sister

Born in South Korea and adopted by a Verona family, Samantha Futerman co-directed the documentary about finding her identical twin sister, who had been adopted by French parents

"Twinsters" is an incredible, only-through-the-Internet story of a Jersey girl who connects with an identical twin sister she never knew she had.

That the film got made is another only-through-the-Internet story. Samantha Futerman, the Verona-raised actress who co-stars in the documentary with her sister Anais Bordier, who was adopted by a French couple, raised a total of $129,082 through two Kickstarter campaigns to make and produce, and now it's available on Netflix. 

In February 2013, friends of Bordier spotted a woman who looked exactly like Bordier in a YouTube video by the American comedian known as KevJumba. After what is described as "a few light Google stalking sessions," Bordier tracked down Futerman, by then living in Los Angeles, via Facebook. The two women discovered they were both born on Nov. 19, 1987, in Busan, South Korea, and put into foster care.

Futerman was adopted by a couple from Verona who already had two biological sons; always dramatic, she graduated from the Professional Performing Arts School in New York City and received a BFA in Theatre Arts from Boston University. Her acting credits include "Memoirs of a Geisha," "21 and Over," and "Kroll Show."

Bordier was adopted by a French couple who had no other children, and grew up in Belgium and in the suburbs of Paris. She loved to draw and earned a degree in textiles before attending the famed Central Saint Martins College of Arts & Design in London. She now works in the fashion industry. 

After the two connected on Facebook and then Skype, they raised money through Kickstarter to meet in London with both their families (and a small film crew, of course). They also reunited in Los Angeles and eventually traveled to Seoul, where they attended the International Korean Adoptee Associations conference, learned more about the land of their birth, and search for their biological mother. 

The sisters also wrote a book, "Separated @ Birth: A True Love Story of Twin Sisters Reunited," published by Penguin.

"Twinsters," co-directed by Futerman and Ryan Miyamoto and the winner of a 2015 special jury award at SXSW, had a small theatrical release in July, with enthusiastic reviews from the New York Times, the Hollywood Reporter and Variety, which wrote, "Watching 'Twinsters,' you get the sense that it's merely one in a multitude of astonishing narratives that have emerged (or are waiting to emerge) from this particular diaspora; even when the film ends, it's clear this particular story has only just begun."

Vicki Hyman may be reached at vhyman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @vickihy or like her on Facebook. Find NJ.com/Entertainment on Facebook, and check out TV Hangover, the podcast from Vicki Hyman and co-host Erin Medley on iTunes, Stitcher or listen here. 

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