Films
This is the heart of Watch Adoptee Films. The films we currently have available are listed below. New films will be featured/added, and those that have been featured in the past may be shown again in the future. So, please check back regularly and/or sign up to receive quick updates via email by filling out the form in the footer.
PLEASE NOTE: Currently all of our films can only be played on your computer. They cannnot be played on a mobile device. We are working on this, though. In the meantime, we apologize for any inconveniences this may cause.
Adopted
Director: Barb Lee
Synopsis: We’ve seen them in grocery stores, playgrounds and at our children’s schools– little Asian girls with their loving white parents. Of the 1.5 million adopted children in the United States, international adoptees are the fastest growing segment, of which most are Asian girls. While many of their stories are heartwarming and reflect our image of American compassion and generosity, the realities are much more complex. According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, adoptees ... [See more]
Struggle for Identity: Issues in Transracial Adoption
Synopsis: Produced in collaboration with the New York State Citizens' Coalition for Children. A starkly realistic account of the transracial adoption experience. Narrated by young adults who were adopted as children, this documentary examines the effects of trans-racial adoption on individuals, families, and society.
Finding Seoul
Director: John C. Sanvidge
Synopsis: Finding Seoul follows one individual as he attempts to find his birth parents in Seoul, South Korea. From the film maker: My name is John Sanvidge and I was adopted from Seoul, South Korea in 1984. I was raised in upstate New York with my other adopted siblings, my brother is also from South Korea. The only life I've known is my average Irish/Italian upbringing, but somewhere down the road we all search for something, ... [See more]
Opening the Bird Cage
Director: Stephanie Flood
Synopsis: Opening the Bird Cage is an experimental short documentary about a Filipino-American adoptee’s journey into her adoption and reunion in her birth country. It opens with old photo albums and personal mixed media, layered with her own vocals and music to encapsulate her childhood isolation. A montage of video follows, capturing a recent journey back to the Philippines, a reunion with birth family, and of her back in the United States, editing this same footage ... [See more]
Roots: Unknown
Director: Zara Phillips
Awards: Winner of the 2008 Garden State Film Festival for Best Short Home Grown Documentary
Synopsis: Roots: Unknown is a 30-minute documentary examining the lifelong impact of adoption. This educational and informative film will focus on the emotional influence adoption has on the adoptee and their families. Interviews and sound bites with adult adoptees, their families and children will be mixed with artistic images of their art and creative expression. Visual images centered on children’s artwork of family tree school projects will be woven with common themes and thoughts found in ... [See more]
Running Dragon
Director: Kim Noonan
Awards: Best Social Commentary, 2008 Poppy Jasper Film Festival
Synopsis: Separated near the end of the Vietnam war, an 'Americanized' young man discovers the painful truth about himself when his Vietnamese biological sister finds him and arranges for them to meet for the very first time with her family in Little Saigon. Running Dragon was featured in Movie Maker Magazine and was one of three films chosen by the Vancouver Asian Film Festival for a panel discussion regarding Asian stereotypes and racism in the film ... [See more]
Living Adoption: Gay Parents Speak
Synopsis: The video follows in the style of PhotoSynthesis’ previous award-winning DVDs, STRUGGLE FOR IDENTITY and FOSTER PARENTS SPEAK, with a compelling cast of adoptive parents who tackle issues ranging from the process of adoption, to being a conspicuous family, parenting teens and helping children develop their identity.