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The 80-minute documentary focuses on the 9- to 13-year-old girls and how they attempt to fit together the puzzle pieces of their pasts.
The impact that this trip makes on the children and their parents cannot be underestimated. It provides a foundation for additional dialogue and emotional development. Because Chinese adoptions are not "open"--birthparent records are not kept because it is a crime to abandon one's child--few details can be found about an adoptee's background.
Occasionally an adoptee can visit with foster parents or the person who discovered the child and took her to an orphanage. But most find little in their orphanage files.
"Found in China" captures the spontaneity of the children seeing China for the first time since leaving the country as infants or toddlers. The documentary reveals their thoughts about their orphanages, caregivers and the foster families.
The possibilities of searching for birthparents is explored by tour participants, with insights from older Korean adoptees and adoption specialists including Sara Dorow, PhD, best known for her book, "When You Were Born in China."
Filmmaker Carolyn Stanek adopted two Chinese daughters in the early 1990s and thus the documentary includes scenes from their orphanage, Jiande, in Zhejiang province. Other stops on the tour included Beijing, Xi'an, Chengdu, Hangzhou, and Shanghai for Stanek's family. Scenes from Nanchang and Changsha were also contributed by another family. Stanek's background includes being a reporter for the Champaign-Urbana News-Gazette, a journalism instructor, and author of a book about Title IX (Contemporary Books). She then obtained an MBA from the University of Chicago which enabled her to become a stock analyst for a couple decades.
Returning to her love of journalism, she took filmmaking classes while researching and preparing to produce "Found in China." Music featured in the documentary is from Jonathan Rickert of Berkeley, CA. His rhythms combine the rich lyricism of Asian influence along with downtempo electronic music.
Nell Bryden, a Brooklyn-born vocalist and guitarist, sings "Goodbye" for the closing credits. San Francisco street musician Michael Masley plays his cymbalom (a Hungarian-styled dulcimer) throughout the terra cotta soldiers scene.
This product is manufactured on demand using DVD-R recordable media. Amazon.com's standard return policy will apply.
Cached date: AWS Called=true
2008-09-07
2008-07-17
2008-03-312008-03-312008-03-282008-03-03The 80-minute documentary focuses on the 9- to 13-year-old girls and how they attempt to fit together the puzzle pieces of their pasts.
The impact that this trip makes on the children and their parents cannot be underestimated. It provides a foundation for additional dialogue and emotional development. Because Chinese adoptions are not "open"--birthparent records are not kept because it is a crime to abandon one's child--few details can be found about an adoptee's background.
Occasionally an adoptee can visit with foster parents or the person who discovered the child and took her to an orphanage. But most find little in their orphanage files.
"Found in China" captures the spontaneity of the children seeing China for the first time since leaving the country as infants or toddlers. The documentary reveals their thoughts about their orphanages, caregivers and the foster families.
The possibilities of searching for birthparents is explored by tour participants, with insights from older Korean adoptees and adoption specialists including Sara Dorow, PhD, best known for her book, "When You Were Born in China."
Filmmaker Carolyn Stanek adopted two Chinese daughters in the early 1990s and thus the documentary includes scenes from their orphanage, Jiande, in Zhejiang province. Other stops on the tour included Beijing, Xi'an, Chengdu, Hangzhou, and Shanghai for Stanek's family. Scenes from Nanchang and Changsha were also contributed by another family. Stanek's background includes being a reporter for the Champaign-Urbana News-Gazette, a journalism instructor, and author of a book about Title IX (Contemporary Books). She then obtained an MBA from the University of Chicago which enabled her to become a stock analyst for a couple decades.
Returning to her love of journalism, she took filmmaking classes while researching and preparing to produce "Found in China." Music featured in the documentary is from Jonathan Rickert of Berkeley, CA. His rhythms combine the rich lyricism of Asian influence along with downtempo electronic music.
Nell Bryden, a Brooklyn-born vocalist and guitarist, sings "Goodbye" for the closing credits. San Francisco street musician Michael Masley plays his cymbalom (a Hungarian-styled dulcimer) throughout the terra cotta soldiers scene.
This product is manufactured on demand using DVD-R recordable media. Amazon.com's standard return policy will apply.
Found in China: an insightful film truly worth watching. 2008-02-16
I ordered this documentary and watched it the same day it arrived in the mail. The film follows a group of adolescent girls as they return to China for a heritage tour, but it's relevance and application extend well beyond the bounds of China adoption; it was beautifully done and touched on many important issues.
The film captured countless wonderful moments. One scene I found especially touching was a foster father who took the day off from work when he learned that his former foster daughter would be visiting his village... he and his wife were overjoyed to see her again. Another memorable scene shows an orphanage Director and her staff as they warmly welcome the girls back- sharing personal stories, photos, and memories of the girls' lives a decade earlier. The film illustrates how much the foster families & nannies cared for and remembered these children, long after the girls' departure from China with their forever families.
The documentary also discusses birth parents- how the girls feel about them, how the birth parents might feel about the choices they have made, and how impact of choice ripples throughout many lives. One of things I appreciated about the film was the sensitive and honest way it addressed loss in adoption; which is not to suggest that adoption is defined only by loss, but the film acknowledges that adoption- like much in life- can be filled with a diverse range of emotions, perspectives, and experiences. The film also explores how the many people involved in adoption- children, adoptive families, foster families, birthparents, and others- might experience a sense of loss in their own unique way. Sara Dorow's comments greatly added to the film as well.
It is at once fascinating and moving to see how the girls and their families experience the journey, and how each must "process" all that has happened in their own way. Each narrative offers an insightful perspective on the individual. Overall, the film was very positive and leaves viewers with a deep appreciation for the powerful impact that this trip had on all who were involved. As a mother of two daughters, I know when my toddlers are older this film will serve as a valuable tool around which dialogue and exploration of their own personal adoption histories can begin.
Some films are worth seeing, this film is also worth owning. Extended family and other important members of the child's life would greatly benefit from watching this film. I cannot recommend it highly enough and I am personally grateful for the obvious thought, sensitivity, and dedicated efforts of all those who helped to create this documentary. I am humbled by the maturity of these girls who so generously allowed the personal details of their stories to be shared with the world. This documentary is a lovely gift to the entire adoption community, but most importantly to our precious children.
Must-have for Chinese adoptive families 2008-02-10
This was a very informative DVD. It's not the most exciting to watch, but definitely worth buying. It gave the points of view of adoptive children and adults regarding revisiting a child's homeland.
A must for parents 2008-01-07
Every parent with an adopted Chinese daughter should own a copy of "Found in China." The film follows a group of "older" girls -- adolescents and pre-adolescents -- as they return to China and visit their orphanages and "finding places." What could have been a standard account of a Homeland Tour is instead a moving, thoughtful and informative documentary. The best parts are the interviews with the girls themselves -- their resilience and wisdom shines through.
A Sentimental Return to China 2007-11-15
I was first introduced to Carolyn Stanek's work in 1997 while waiting for a referral from China for our oldest daughter. Carolyn was one of the China adoption pioneers and filmed extensively during the trip she made in 1994 to adopt her daughter Tai Li. It was a window to an exotic and unknown world of Chinese adoption, and I hung on her every word, every description, every scene. It was not a polished piece of work but it was intensely personal and from the heart.
Fast forward a dozen years: Carolyn took her family back to China for a homeland tour so her two daughters could see, hear, feel, touch and taste the land of their birth. They traveled with a group of other families with pre-teens that had been adopted as infants and a young Asian-American social worker. The first part of the film is pure giggling girl power as the young women play tourist at Beijing's most famous landmarks. But the film turns more serious and somber as the reality of why they are there sinks in. Carolyn's daughters visit their orphanage and finding places under the guidance of their social worker and the homeland tour leader.
For me, the most poignant moment in the film was when Carolyn's oldest daughter visits her finding place, now an empty and abandoned movie theater in a small village. The young social worker put her arm around young Tai Li in front of the theater and painted for her a picture of how the theater must have looked on that day: a lighted marquee, people scurrying by, surely a place for a child to be found quickly. Every parent of a child who was abandoned at one time must watch that scene with a pang in their heart but with hope their child would someday understand their beginnings and what might have driven the decisions of their birthfamily.
Carolyn Stanek's film making has benefited greatly from formal training following her initial ventures, but what is most evident is her ongoing passion for the adoption experience. The film is a mixture of personal moments and professional interviews with the trip participants and adoption workers. Sara Dorow, author of "When You Were Born in China," lends a scholarly touch with her insight into adoption and abandonment issues.
After watching this video, my 10 year old daughter raised questions about her birthparents and foster family in China. Watching it together can open a dialog with our children who are ready to talk about adoption and the journey they took to their forever families.
