Daughter From Danang

In honor of Gail Dolgin, a powerhouse filmmaker and activist who passed away earlier this month after a decade-long battle with cancer, here’s Daughter From Danang:


Hat tip to Paige Lawrence.

Co-created by Dolgin with Vincente Franco, this acclaimed documentary features the deeply emotional and conflicted reunion of a Vietnamese mother, Mai Thi Kim, with her Amerasian daughter, Heidi Bub (birthname Mai Thi Hiep), 22 years after the war and Operation Babylift pulled them apart. “The 83-minute film won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival, and was nominated for best documentary in the 2003 Academy Awards. It lost to Michael Moore’s Bowling for Columbine, but Dolgin and her collaborator, Vicente Franco, shared the stage with Moore until they were booed off amid Moore’s anti-war speech.”

Click here to read a compassionate and comprehensive Q&A by the filmmakers.

3 Responses to “Daughter From Danang”

  1. fortheloveofthestars Says:

    So a man was giving an anti-war speech on stage right next to a woman who’s child was separated from her by war and people booed? Who was booing? Is their something else I have to know about that story or can I be pissed now?

  2. Lysha Says:

    Thank you so much for posting this and the link to the Q&A. A very powerful story that I am glad to have seen.

  3. Mer Says:

    Lysha, my pleasure. Amazing, right?

    Fortheloveofthestars, it was the co-directors of the film, standing in solidarity with Moore, who were booed, not Mai Thi Kim. Here’s Moore’s speech: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40T4-mUt1Jk