1. The Twinning Reaction
An astounding exposé that gives voice to the unwitting subjects of an infamous American scientific experiment: the 1960s Neubauer-Bernard study of separated twins. Told from the perspective of the Jewish identical twins and triplets who were secretly split up in infancy and adopted through Louise Wise Services, a Jewish adoption agency, the documentary examines the traumatic, long-term effects of the separations — and continuing deception — on the children and their adoptive families.
It has an average vote of 8 on TMDB.
2. Lenin kam nur bis Lüdenscheid - Meine kleine deutsche Revolution (Lenin kam nur bis Lüdenscheid - Meine kleine deutsche Revolution)
(Lenin kam nur bis Lüdenscheid - Meine kleine deutsche Revolution)
It has an average vote of 7 on TMDB.
3. All My Fathers (Alle meine Väter)
Jan's father is not his father at all. The directors knows this and takes this fact as the starting point for a very personal documentary film project about the search for his biological father.
4. My Flesh and Blood
My Flesh and Blood is a 2003 documentary film by Jonathan Karsh chronicling a year in the life of the Tom family. The Tom family is notable as the mother, Susan, adopted eleven children, most of whom had serious disabilities or diseases. The film itself is notable for handling the sensitive subject matter in an unsentimental way that is more uplifting than one might expect.
It has an average vote of 7.9 on TMDB.
5. Tribu (Tribu)
Ruben and Gio have been recently adopted by Evelyn and Memo. The four of them try to create a home where the past, the bad and good stories, and the dreams in common for the future blend all together.
6. A.k.a. Nikki S. Lee
The jet set life of artist Nikki S. Lee.
7. Dawnland
They were forced to assimilate into white society: children ripped away from their families, depriving them of their culture and erasing their identities. Can reconciliation help heal the scars from childhoods lost? "Dawnland" is the untold story of Indigenous child removal in the US through the nation's first-ever government-endorsed truth and reconciliation commission, which investigated the devastating impact of Maine’s child welfare practices on the Wabanaki people.
It has an average vote of 6 on TMDB.
8. Moon Child (Kuutyttö)
A movie about two women who are mothers to the same child, and a child who belongs to two different worlds.
It has an average vote of 6 on TMDB.
9. Songs of Love from Hawaii (하와이 연가)
(하와이 연가)
10. D'une mère à l'autre (D'une mère à l'autre)
(D'une mère à l'autre)
11. Filho (Filho)
Actually, Tomas knows his parents. Born in Brazil in 1993 and adopted from there, he now lives with them in the Netherlands. Now he is faced with the question of whether he should look for his biological mother, or if there are reasons not to do so.
12. Save My Seoul (Save My Seoul)
Eddie and Jason, two Korean-American brothers get in over their heads when they are called to Korea to make a short film on prostitution and sex-trafficking. Things get complicated when they meet Crystal and Esther, two prostitutes who reveal just how deep the problem goes and set off on a dangerous mission to capture the truth. With the use of hidden cameras and access to pimps, johns, and sex-workers, the filmmakers explore and unravel the complexity of the sex trade in Seoul. They learn that this problem is rooted in issues far deeper than exploited girls and lustful men. Instead, it's a consequence of a culture and government that condones and turns a blind eye to the biggest human injustice of our time.
It has an average vote of 4 on TMDB.
13. Free Chol Soo Lee
On June 3, 1973, a man was murdered in a busy intersection of San Francisco’s Chinatown as part of an ongoing gang war. Chol Soo Lee, a 20-year-old Korean immigrant who had previous run-ins with the law, was arrested and convicted based on flimsy evidence and the eyewitness accounts of white tourists who couldn’t distinguish between Asian features. Sentenced to life in prison, Chol Soo Lee would spend years fighting to survive behind bars before journalist K.W. Lee took an interest in his case. The intrepid reporter’s investigation would galvanize a first-of-its-kind pan-Asian American grassroots movement to fight for Chol Soo Lee’s freedom, ultimately inspiring a new generation of social justice activists.
It has an average vote of 7.4 on TMDB.
14. Daughter of a Lost Bird
What does blood have to do with identity? Kendra Mylnechuk, an adult Native adoptee, born in 1980 at the cusp of the enactment of the Indian Child Welfare Act, is on a journey to reconnect with her birth family and discover her Lummi heritage.
15. Aka Dan
YouTube musician and Korean American adoptee Dan Matthews travels to South Korea to perform and reunite with his biological family, including a long lost twin he never knew he had.
16. Madonna of the Mills
Uplifting tale of Staten Island woman who creates modern underground railroad and rescues 2,000 dogs condemned to death in Amish Country puppy mills. The film chronicles Laura F on her weekend rescue missions to Amish Country. With her Brooklyn mom and Staten Island girl friends by her side, Laura embarks on a four-year odyssey to rescue dogs from the hellish conditions of Amish puppy mills. The film follows four of the dogs from the time their lives are spared until they are nursed back to health and placed with their forever families. We see the dogs leave the cages where they have spent their entire lives and watch these dogs, who were given up for dead, transform the lives of the people who adopt them.
17. MUM Misunderstandings of Miscarriage
At age 31, after experiencing her second miscarriage, Tahyna MacManus was devastated, lost, angry and, despite those around her, felt terribly alone. She picked up a camera and started to record her story and in doing so found her tribe. Resilient, courageous women speaking of their sadness, their shame and their guilt while still holding onto hope. Tahyna discovers that 1 in 4 Australian women experience miscarriage so why aren’t we talking about it? In this highly intimate journey, Tahyna is on a mission to lift the lid on all that shame, provide some answers and make sure that women no longer walk this path alone. But first, she has to face her own fears.
18. Ingrid Chauvin : notre combat pour adopter (Ingrid Chauvin : notre combat pour adopter)
(Ingrid Chauvin : notre combat pour adopter)
It has an average vote of 5.7 on TMDB.
19. LA 92
Twenty-five years after the verdict in the Rodney King trial sparked several days of protests, violence and looting in Los Angeles, LA 92 immerses viewers in that tumultuous period through stunning and rarely seen archival footage.
It has an average vote of 7.8 on TMDB.
20. Let It Fall: Los Angeles 1982-1992
An in-depth look at the culture of Los Angeles in the ten years leading up to the 1992 uprising that erupted after the verdict of police officers cleared of beating Rodney King.
It has an average vote of 7.7 on TMDB.
