43
Film by Boardman native Stephanie Wang-Breal on PBS ‘Tough Love’ for parents
By GUY D’ASTOLFO
Sometimes a judge has to take a child away from his or her parents when there is a pattern of neglect, addiction or abuse.
But what happens when those parents want their children back?
To earn a second chance, they must navigate a tricky family-court system, with social workers monitoring their progress in a process that could take years.
The court and its workers put the parents under the microscope, and then decide their fate.
The result can be a life turned around and a joyful reunion. Or it can be another failure.
In “Tough Love,” the latest documentary film by Boardman native Stephanie Wang-Breal, this system is illuminated on a personal level. It follows two parents’ efforts to regain custody of their children as they unfold before the viewer.
“Tough Love” premieres Monday at 10 p.m. on WQED-PBS and on WNEO’s Fusion; it premieres on WNEO at 10 p.m. Tuesday.
Wang-Breal is a Boardman High School graduate, and the daughter of Dr. H.S. Wang and Florence Wang of Boardman.
“Tough Love” is her second documentary in the POV series. She also did 2010’s “Wo Ai Ni, Mommy” (“I Love You, Mommy”), which documents the adoption of a young Chinese girl by an American family.
In both films, Wang-Breal uses a fly-on-the-wall movie-making style, in which the viewer is left to reach his own opinion. There is no narration, no agenda that is being pushed, and no attempt to steer or sway the opinion of the viewer.
The result is invariably a film that is engrossing and very personal.
“I try hard not to narrate,” said Wang-Breal in a phone interview from her Brooklyn, N.Y., home. “It feels like someone talking down to you.”
The power of her films lies in their neutrality and honesty. It also delineates the difference between an artist, such as Wang-Breal, and an activist.
“An artist presents subject matter and lets viewers get their own perspective,” she said. “An activist has a strong point of view. I don’t have anything against [activists]. We need them. But I like to believe I am more of an artist. I am leaving it open.”
As if to demonstrate the power of objectivity, “Tough Love” was screened before lawmakers and officials on Capitol Hill on June 17 as part of policy discussions on federal financing for child welfare reform.
“It focused on my film,” said Wang-Breal, who addressed the officials at the event. “They are interested in how we put money toward preventive care. Most money now goes toward foster care and adoption but the new focus is on not taking kids away from their parents in the first place.”
In “Tough Love,” Wang-Breal follows two parents on opposite coasts.
In New York City, there is Hosna “Hannah” Siddique, a young Bangladeshi-born woman who is newly married. She has two kids from a previous relationship that were taken from her custody due to a history of not properly caring for their welfare.
In Seattle, there is Patrick Brown, a single father with an addiction problem and an ex-wife who is out of the picture.
Wang-Breal began filming “Tough Love” with a handful of parents who were seeking to regain custody of their kids. But one by one they dropped out, leaving just Siddique and Brown.
“They couldn’t keep up,” said Wang-Breal. “Only these two could hang on. There were just too many people coming into their home, watching them. It was too much.”
The openness and extroverted personalities of Siddique and Brown not only made for good filmmaking, but were a source of strength as each lived through the scrutiny of probing social workers and judges.
Films selected for the POV documentary series focus on individuals who transform themselves or their communities. Getting picked is an honor because thousands of films are submitted each year, but only 12 make the cut.
With “Tough Love,” Wang-Breal has now achieved this honor twice in a span of five years.
Looking ahead, the Boardman native has two documentary films in various stages of completion, one delving into human trafficking and the other an examination of sex education for high school students.