About the Filmmaker

I’m Lee Milby, a director and commercial storyboard artist based in NYC, as well as an Asian American transracial domestic adoptee and former foster youth, born in Hawaii and adopted by my white foster parents at 2.5 years old.

Growing up, I had several core experiences that lead me to where I am today, but it wasn’t until I was an adult working in the film industry and trying to get films made about real adoptee experiences, that I discovered a significant barrier preventing adoptees from sharing their lived experiences.

After writing and pitching several fiction short film scripts that were based on true adoptee stories, I was surprised by the stark contrast of reactions between adoptee filmmakers who were moved and felt my perspective was fresh and authentic vs non adoptee filmmakers who were skeptical, confused, and felt that my stories were inaccurate because they didn’t fit the adoption / orphan tropes they expected.

I realized there was this HUGE gap between lived adoptee experiences and society’s understanding of adoptee / orphan stories. This lead to an examination of the history of adoptee narratives, from Hercules and Moses to Harry Potter, Stuart Little, Spiderman and beyond.

A frustration was already brewing within the adoptee community about how our stories were often told for us but not by us. I thought at the time, surely, in this modern era where marginalized communities are being sought out and given platforms for sharing unique perspectives – SURELY in the 2020’s we would start seeing some adoptee films written, directed, or produced by actual adoptees.

But then Blue Bayou came out, boycotted due to rumors that the filmmakers allegedly used adoptee Adam Crasper’s life story rights without permission. And then Joy Ride came out, with only a passing mention in one article that the non-adoptee writers had some friends who were adoptees.

And then The Blind Side controversy erupted, with Michael Oher speaking out about how that classic feel-good blockbuster was founded on a bed of lies.

The adoptee community has very strong and diverse feelings about how our stories are represented in media, and no one seems to be listening.

I want to put a spotlight on these discussions about representation and adoptee stories in media which have been circulating widely within the adoptee community, but largely ignored by the rest of society.

I want to explore the human nature of storytelling, how narratives shape society’s treatment of marginalized communities, and highlight the immense value that is lost when groundbreaking perspectives are discarded as a casualty of society’s relentless commitment to misunderstanding.