Lost Children, Lost Stories
Oct 11, 10:44 PM by administrator
Program 10: Lost Children, Lost Stories
Sun. Nov. 8th, 1:30 PM
Only after the lengthy passage of time are we able to reflect on how life’s journey has shaped who we are and what we’ve become – and perhaps where we should continue. In Tammy Nguyen Lee’s OPERATION BABYLIFT: THE LOST CHILDREN OF VIETNAM, orphans who were airlifted out during the Fall of Saigon retrace their journey growing up in America and their struggle for belonging and a sense of place. Three films are programmed with this compelling documentary – the first is Shine Mi-Hyang Park’s JOHN’S UNTILTED CLOCK, a surrealistic animation of a man recounting his life and his experiences. This is followed by Ellen Tang’s GIRL ANY MORE, exploring life and immigration and choices and David Thanh’s, THE CaN’Tswer, which follows a cancer survivor’s journey into taking risks.
Operation Babylift: The Lost Children Of Vietnam
Director/Writer/Producer: Tammy Nguyen Lee
Documentary | DigiBeta | Colour | 2009 | 72 min | USA
OPERATION BABYLIFT: THE LOST CHILDREN OF VIETNAM tells the significant yet untold story of the $2 million dollar US initiative that airlifted over 2,500 Vietnamese orphans out of a war-torn country to protect them from the impending threat of the Communist regime. Coined by some as “one of the most humanitarian efforts in history,” it was also plagued by lawsuits and political turmoil. Facing enormous prejudice and stigmatized by an unpopular war, the Vietnamese Babylift Adoptees had a cultural identity crisis unlike any other immigrant or adoptee community.
OPERATION BABYLIFT follows the lives of almost 20 adoptees as they retrace the issues that they faced growing up in America, from the prejudice and racial discrimination, their feelings of isolation and search for identity, and finally how they struggle to find peace with their past. These adoptees grew up facing unique challenges in America, including prejudice overshadowed by a controversial war and cultural identity crisis. Each one represents a different face of the adoptee experience.
This film explores an important, yet relatively unknown part of American and Vietnamese history and deals with relevant and contemporary issues of cultural identity crisis, the moral questions involved in international adoption, and our responsibilities to the victims of war. Through complex lost stories, the documentary shows the universal human need for a sense of home and belonging, at whatever cost.
CANADIAN PREMIERE | DIRECTOR & EXECUTIVE PRODUCER IN ATTENDANCE
Previous Screenings/Awards: Vietnamese International Film Festival (Audience Choice
Award)
preceded by:
John’s Untilted Clock
Director/Producer: Shine Mi-Hyang Park
Animation | Beta SP | Colour | 2007 | 4 min | Canada
A man’s life is wistfully reflected through his interactions and life shaping experiences in this animated surreal film.
Girl Any More
Director/Writer/Producer: Ellen Tang
Documentary | DigiBeta | Colour | 2008 | 9 min | Canada
Can you choose who you become? GIRL ANY MORE is a first-person exploration of two generations’ experience with choices and transitions as immigrants from Hong Kong.
VANCOUVER PREMIERE
Previous Screenings/Awards: Montreal World Film Festival, Calgary International Film Festival, Silverwave Film Festival, Pier 21
The CaN’Tswer
Director/Co-Writer/Producer: David Thanh | Co-Writer: Carolyn Jarvis
Documentary | DigiBeta | Colour | 2008 | 16 min | Canada
Ten years after his leukemia diagnosis, Ryan is a survivor who is reluctant to take risks and move forward with his life. The opportunity to take a backpacking trip through the Andes Mountains changes him and his perception of his cancer experience from one of survivor to thriver.
DIRECTOR IN ATTENDANCE
Previous Screenings/Awards: Rainier Independent Film Festival, Flagstaff Mountain Film Festival, Squamish Mountain Film Festival
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