I Think You’ve Been Looking For Me (2018)
Director Kacim Steets with his mother Dorothy Steets Azouz
Recognition
World Premiere Broadcast on CBC November 23 at 9pm
Available online on the CBC Website (Canada Only)
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Additional Resources
THE LEGACY OF FORCED ADOPTION: 300,000 UNMARRIED CANADIAN WOMEN HAD TO GIVE UP THEIR BABIES
DECADES OF SHAME DISAPPEARED WHEN I FINALLY MET THE SON I GAVE UP FOR ADOPTION 48 YEARS AGO
In 1968, Dorothy Steets, a young Catholic woman from New Jersey, is sexually assaulted and becomes pregnant. Unmarried mothers in postwar North-American society were harshly judged and faced enormous institutional pressures. There was no listening to Dorothy’s desires or needs — she was immediately sent away to a maternity home in another town to allow the “illegitimate” pregnancy to come to term in hiding. When she gave birth, Catholic church services immediately gave the baby up for adoption, leaving a gaping hole in Dorothy’s heart.
In January 2017, after 34 years of relentless lobbying, a law in New Jersey was passed allowing adoptees to obtain their original birth certificates, giving them access to the names of their birth parents. As a result of this new legislation, Joe Foley, Dorothy’s son, immediately sought out his birth certificate and uncovered the name of his birth mother. An hour later, he found himself chatting on Facebook with his biological sister, Lila.
Dorothy with her first born son Joe Foley
Through the eyes of Kacim, Dorothy’s youngest son, I Think You’ve Been Looking For Mechronicles Dorothy and Joe’s emotional reunion, exposing a dark cultural and institutional era that has had a lasting impact on thousands of families. Through personal testimonies and conversations with their extended family, we see how mother and son both suffered as a result of this early separation — Dorothy with feelings of shame and detachment, while underlying separation anxiety clouded all of Joe’s relationships.
As their new mother-son relationship evolves, Joe and Dorothy lead us through the joy and confusion in coming to terms with their new identities. Rather than focus on past errors of institutions and governments, they’re thankful to have found each other and looking forward to forming closer ties with their newly expanded families in the years to come.
Credits
Director Kacim Steets
Producer Frederic Bohbot
Writers Stephane Lavoie, Kacim Steets Co-Director Stephane Lavoie Editor Kacim Steets, Carl Freed
Cinematography Kacim Steets
Composer Adam Daudrich
Line Producer Valerie Shamash
Distributed by Bunbury Films
Produced in association with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canadian Media Fund, Rogers Documentary Fund.
Specifications
Genre: Documentary
Category: POV
Production year: 2018
Language: English
Duration: 45 minutes
Delivery Format: Electronic File, DCP
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