01
THE FILM
BASED ON A TRUE STORY
SYNOPSIS:
Based on true events. A resilient young Ukrainian multi-racial mother, who has recently escaped domestic violence and found refuge in Los Angeles with her son, faces a heart-wrenching ordeal when her son is unexpectedly taken away by his father under the Hague Convention. Determined to reclaim her child, she embarks on a relentless journey, unraveling a web of dark secrets and encountering unforeseen consequences.
PRODUCTION:
Produced by the nonprofit White Ribbon USA, working with the Hague Domestic Violence Project at Berkeley, we aim to protect women and children from domestic violence worldwide, by reforming The Hague Convention, both in the US and globally.
The film is based on the true story of a Ukrainian refugee mother whose child was returned to a proven abuser by The Hague, despite a California court's assessment of the “grave danger” posed to the child. It focuses on the cyclical nature of domestic violence and immigrant families who are at greatest risk.
With Oscar-nominated writer Jamie Donoghue, the actress Helena Howard (whose debut was hailed by The New Yorker as "one of the great teen performances in film history"), actor Edi Gathegi (who stars in House, X-Men and The Blacklist), and the actor and singer Reeve Carney, who stars opposite Lady Gaga and Al Pacino in House of Gucci.
"This film explores the vulnerability of refugees and immigrants to DV, the cyclical nature of DV, and the ways in which society and laws such as the Hague Convention re-victimize brave survivors who escape DV." - Indrani Pal-Chaudhuri, director.
FILM AS AN ADVOCACY TOOL:
Reunited is a powerful advocacy tool. Berkeley’s The Hague Domestic Violence Project has proposed ways to reform the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction in domestic violence, based on analyzing more than 400 cases. This film is based on the recurring experiences of families in many of these cases. Our aim is to mobilize audiences to recognize and fight domestic violence (DV) in their communities, and to encourage the central Hague Convention authorities to adopt DV reform, to protect women and children survivors worldwide.
02
THE FACTS
FACTS ABOUT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE:
Studies show: 1 in 3 women worldwide are harmed by DV. 1 in 2 women immigrants are harmed by DV. The majority of women's homicides are by their domestic partners, often when they try to leave.
Many mothers stay to protect their children. But kids who witness DV are harmed as much as if they were abused themselves.
THE HAGUE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE PROJECT
Since 2003, the goal of the Hague Domestic Violence Project has been to clearly establish child exposure to domestic violence as an exception to the otherwise required return to her or his country of habitual residence under the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. The project continues its work at the American Bar Association Commission on Domestic & Sexual Violence.
PROTECTING KIDS: RETHINKING THE HAGUE CONVENTION
In 1980, an international treaty was designed to return children who had been abducted by a parent who moved to another country. Back then, the people drafting the treaty thought the typical abductor would be a noncustodial father skipping town with the kids, leaving mom with little recourse to try to get her children back. Three decades later, research indicates that 68% of the abducting parents in cases under this treaty are mothers — and that many of them are fleeing abusive spouses.
The Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction has been adopted by 82 countries, which are expected to help return abducted children to their habitual residence within six weeks of a parent filing a petition. But Jeffrey Edleson and Taryn Lindhorst, lead researchers on a new study of Hague Convention cases, argue that the treaty is often used against women seeking safety for themselves — and for their children — from violent husbands.
03
THE MISSION
FILM GOALS
1. Women's rights, Immigrants, refugees, domestic violence, child rights.
2. To raise awareness and to stop the cycle of Domestic Violence.
3. To protect thousands of mothers and children who are survivors of gender-based violence. To advocate for Hague Convention reform, in the US and at the global Hague Convention authority in the Netherlands. With the support of lawyers and professors researching at the Berkeley University Hague Project.
