Tribeca: An Everyman Goes From YouTube to Journey How many YouTube hits does it take to get to superstardom? For the musician and artist Arnel Pineda, it took only the right one. When Neal Schon, the guitarist for Journey, was looking for a new singer for the band, he searched on YouTube and found Mr. Pineda, a Filipino singer who was performing Journey songs with his group the Zoo Band. Mr. Schon asked to meet with Mr. Pineda and, eventually, Mr. Pineda, an artist who had logged so many hours impersonating the sounds of rock stars, became one. A new documentary playing this weekend at the Tribeca Film Festival, "Don't Stop Believin": Everyman's Journey" looks deeper into the unlikely story of Arnel Pineda and how he became the frontman for one of America's most popular rock acts. It follows Mr. Pineda on the band's 2008 tour and spends some time with him in more personal moments as well. The film's director, Ramona S. Diaz, spoke with Mekado Murphy by phone, discussing some of the elements that went into putting "Don't Stop Believin" " together. How did you first come across Mr. Arnel's story? I'm Filipino-American, so I'm plugged into all these e-mails that circulate about other Filipino-Americans. There was an e-mail circulating that was written by the immigration officer that gave Arnel his visa to come to the U.S. to audition for Journey. It was the most hilarious e-mail. It described Arnel as literally singing for his visa. Immigration made him sing "Wheel in the Sky." And I just thought it was so funny. At the bottom of that e-mail was the link to YouTube, the very same link that Neal Schon saw. The film shows footage of Mr. Arnel's audition for Journey, but you began following him a little later in the process, correct? For that first audition, Arnel traveled with his manager to San Francisco. He told his manager, You have to film me with the band because this might be the only time I'll ever be with them, so I'll have a record of having been with Journey. So it was for his own personal use, but it was lucky for us, because it was decently shot and we were given permission to use it. That happened in 2007 and I found out about the story in 2008. So Steve Perry, Journey's former lead singer, doesn't have any interviews in the documentary. Did you approach him about being in it? I always thought maybe down the line, we'll ask for an interview with Perry. But as I started cutting the film, I found I didn't feel a need for his interview, because it's really Arnel's story. It's the story of Journey now. In the film, we go back in time and encapsulate 30 years of Journey into 5 minutes. So at the end of the day, I didn't need his voice. But I'm happy we were able use his image, shots of him singing in the film. We showed his management all the footage we were going to use, and the context as well, and he signed off on it. It went rather smoothly. What impressions did you have of Mr. Arnel making this documentary? He's a class act. When I first heard about him, I thought this film could have been a five-minute story. But I decided to really pursue it when I met Arnel for the first time. I found that he was really present. He can articulate an inner life that's layered and complicated. And he's still the same as when I met him in "08. He still has both feet on the ground. Were you a fan of Journey before? I grew up with their songs. They were all familiar. But after this documentary, I have a new found respect for what they do. Their longevity is something to be honored. But also to come up with a catalog of songs that are evergreen, that's such a talent. We were on tour with them, so every night we would hear the same songs, but every time they started, we would get carried away by them. So I understand the fans that go from concert to concert. How has Mr. Arnel's presence in the band affected the Philippines? Arnel is like Elvis to the Filipino people. But Journey has always been big there. What did you discover shooting this film that you hadn't realized before? Rock "n" roll is hard work. It's a tough act, but they make it look easy. And hat's off to Arnel for taking it on. I think he really survives it great.