“I want to tell mothers not to give up their children for adoption and instead raise them, no matter how difficult it is.” 

 - Myung-Ja Noh, Birth Mother

Brent

Adopted from South Korea to South Dakota, Brent had an “all-American” upbringing, hardly questioning his Korean origins or ethnic identity. It wasn’t until his oldest daughter was diagnosed with a heart murmur that he decided seek out medical records from his biological family. Even though Brent had wondered why he was adopted he never thought he would find the answer–until he reunites on Korean national TV with Myungja, his birthmother. After 30 years apart Brent finally learns the truth. Hesitant and uncertain at first, he learns to open up and trust Myungja. Seeking out a relationship with her, he considers how a life in Korea might be.

Myunja

In South Korea during the early 1970s, Myungja was a young mother on the verge of poverty and desperation. Her husband gambled and refused to work. Left without options, she put her son in the care of relatives while she searched for work in another town. When Myungja returned, her son was gone—taken away and put up for adoption. Devastated, she searched for her son for years not knowing that he was adopted to America. After a reunion on national TV, she says: “Now that we have met, I don’t want to be away from him—not even for a single day.” But their reunion is short-lived. Meeting twice in the next four years, we follow Myungia and Brent, as they navigate a delicate and touching path towards reconciliation and understanding.