IN THE MIX BY MIC DIAZ
When Celeste Friedman first began writing what would become Butterfly: Where Hearts Meet Fate – The Infinite Journey of Love & Karma, she wasn’t setting out to become a filmmaker. The book, built from years of journal entries written in real time, captured her reflections on love, heartbreak, and transformation. Those raw pages—never meant to be fiction or fantasy—eventually became the soul of a new feature film titled Love & Karma, a cinematic exploration of healing, joy, and the endless possibility of one’s life.
The film will make its world premiere with a private screening at the Asian World Film Festival on Sunday, November 16 at The Culver Theatre in Culver City, followed by a second screening open to the public on Wednesday, November 19, also at The Culver Theatre.
Friedman’s path to this moment reads like a story of reinvention itself. Before becoming an author, designer, and producer, she built a thriving career in commercial real estate, specializing in shopping-center leasing. Her experience creating spaces for businesses to grow honed her deep understanding of vision, resilience, and the energy it takes to turn an idea into reality—qualities that now define her work in film and fashion. For years, she matched entrepreneurs with locations where they could flourish; today, she creates stories and opportunities that inspire others to believe in the same possibility for their own lives.
“My purpose in doing all this,” Friedman shares, “is to show others the possibility of their lives—to help people realize that they have the power to change their karma, to shift their circumstances, and to find joy and happiness no matter where they are. It’s about believing that transformation is always possible.”
As her career evolved, Friedman launched Bontika Jewelry & Fashion, a lifestyle brand that embodies her love for beauty, craftsmanship, and self-expression. Through Bontika, she designed collections that celebrate individuality and empowerment, showcasing her creations in events that unite art, culture, and couture. From there, her creative journey naturally expanded into writing—and ultimately, into filmmaking. She founded Bontika Films LLC, the banner under which Love & Karma comes to life, seamlessly blending her entrepreneurial vision with her passion for storytelling.
At its heart, Love & Karma follows Alessa, a high-achieving San Francisco real-estate professional whose outer success contrasts sharply with the emotional scars of a painful divorce. When she returns home to the Philippines for a 40-year class reunion, she unexpectedly reconnects with her childhood crush—an encounter that reawakens long-buried feelings and challenges her to rediscover love, forgiveness, and joy.
The story moves fluidly across San Francisco, Cebu, and Bali, mirroring Alessa’s inner evolution. San Francisco symbolizes ambition and independence; Cebu reconnects her with her cultural and emotional roots; and Bali becomes a space for stillness, healing, and awakening. Like Friedman’s own path across industries and continents, Love & Karma is about the courage to change one’s karma—to transform life’s circumstances into something luminous and new.
The film stars Belinda Panelo, the beloved former MTV Asia VJ whose radiant portrayal brings depth and grace to Alessa’s journey, and Jojo Riguerra, whose warmth and quiet strength anchor the story’s emotional core. They lead a diverse, international cast that includes celebrated actors Bai Ling, Eric Roberts, and Joanna Pacula, whose performances weave a global tapestry of connection and transformation.
While the film is inspired by Friedman’s book, it also expands upon it—offering audiences a visual journey through the universal themes of love, loss, resilience, and rebirth. The butterfly, Friedman’s enduring symbol, embodies that metamorphosis: delicate yet unstoppable, fragile yet fearless. It reminds us that change is not something to fear, but to embrace, because it holds the key to our deepest joy.
Friedman’s purpose in bringing Love & Karma to life is simple yet profound—to convey to others the possibility of their own lives. Through this film, she invites viewers to reimagine what’s possible for themselves, to understand that even when life feels uncertain, we have the power to transform our circumstances and create happiness anew.
As the lights dim on November 16 and the first frame of Love & Karma flickers to life at the Culver Theatre, Celeste Friedman will have come full circle—from helping businesses find their perfect spaces to helping audiences find the courage to transform their own stories. Her journey reminds us that the spaces we build, whether in business or in love, ultimately lead us back to the heart. And sometimes, the greatest transformations happen when we open ourselves to both—when love gives meaning to our past, and the possibility of life itself shows us where we’re meant to be.