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Inay film image; two people hugging in the snow

Inay (Mama)

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From the 1990s, the Live-In Caregiver Program attracted thousands of Filipino women to Canada as migrant workers, enabling them to send money back home and gain permanent residency. In Inay (Tagalog for “Mama”), director Thea Loo and cinematographer Jeremiah Reyes (a husband and wife duo) turn the camera on themselves to explore the cultural and psychological impact on the children who were abandoned by their mothers out of economic necessity. With remarkable frankness, Jeremiah and their friend Shirley testify to similar narratives of secrets, anger, a lack of belonging, and the depression that results from intergenerational trauma, revealing that childhood wounds linger even into adulthood.

The documentary examines the repercussions of systemic policies and government legislation which are only now being felt and spoken about by generations of Filipino Canadians. Deeply personal and self-reflective, Inay reveals the hidden pain behind the lives of women who sacrificed themselves to take care of Canada’s children and elderly, and the loved ones they had to leave behind.

+ short film: Dear Watsonville (Sondy Lucille, USA, 2024, 18 mins)
A mixed-media documentary offering an intimate glimpse into the lives of the manong generation, the first generation of Filipino migrants to arrive en masse to the U.S., as seen through the eyes of their children.

Director

Thea Loo

Featuring

Thea Loo, Jeremiah Reyes, Shirley Lagman, Rowena Loo, Patrick Loo, Elvira Gangte

Credits
Country of Origin

Canada/Philippines

Year

2024

Language

In English and Kapampangan with English subtitles

Awards

Arbutus Award, VIFF

19+
74 min
No More Productions, Knowledge Network, The Cinematheque

Book Tickets

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Credits

Executive Producer

Patrice Ramsay, Priscilla Galvez, Chelsea Birks

Producer

Thea Loo, Natalie Murao

Cinematography

Jeremiah Reyes, Christian Yves Jones

Editor

Anna Chiyeko Shannon

Original Music

Moses Caliboso, Jeremiah Reyes

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