Image

8:16 PM / Friday November 8, 2024

19 Apr 2019

“FOSTER,” a revealing firsthand look at foster care in the U.S., debuts May 7 on HBO

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
April 19, 2019 Category: Entertainment Posted by:

Documentary debuts during National Foster Care Month

With one in eight American children suffering a confirmed case of neglect or abuse by age 18, there are currently more than 400,000 children in foster care in the U.S., a number that continues to grow each year.

Drawing on unprecedented access, “Foster” explores the often-misunderstood world of foster care through compelling stories from the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services, the largest county child welfare agency in the country. Mixing firsthand accounts of people navigating the system with insights from social workers, advocates and others, the film offers a realistic but hopeful perspective on a community that needs society’s support when it debuts Tuesday, May 7 (8:00-10:00 p.m. ET/PT), exclusively on HBO.

The documentary will also be available on HBO On Demand, HBO NOW, HBO GO and partners’ streaming platforms.

Producer Deborah Oppenheimer and writer-director Mark Jonathan Harris (HBO’s Oscar®-winning “Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport”) reunite to upend some of the most enduring myths about foster care, going beyond the stereotypes.

“Foster” visits courtrooms, foster homes, juvenile centers, hospitals and the neighborhoods of Los Angeles to tell moving stories of the foster care system in the United States. One literally begins in the cradle, focusing on an infant born to a mother who tests positive for cocaine at the child’s birth.

Elsewhere, the documentary features the accounts of: a teenager who entered the system through tragic circumstances and is on probation for a typical adolescent act that might not have been prosecuted in the case of someone from an intact home; a young woman transitioning to college and independence, who has lived in more homes than she can remember; a former foster child who has overcome her painful past to become a powerful advocate for children; and a foster mother who has provided support to more than 100 children.

In conjunction with the debut of “Foster”, Participant Media is launching a social impact campaign, including a ten-state screening tour of the film, that is intended to bring individuals, organizations, corporations and government agencies together to change perceptions of foster youth from “those children” to “OUR children,” and to accelerate solutions aimed at helping children and families to thrive.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Leave a Comment

Recent News

Sports

The balancing act

November 4, 2024

Share Tweet Email The Philadelphia Eagles may have found their offensive balance by adding more Saquon Barkley...

SUNrise

Two historic Philadelphia churches offer lessons for an America divided today and in its infancy

November 3, 2024

Share Tweet Email Sunlight shines through the colorful stained-glass windows at Philadelphia’s Mother Bethel AME on Sunday,...

Health

Medicare open enrollment open through Dec. 7

October 21, 2024

Share Tweet Email Family Features If you’re enrolled in Medicare, it’s important to remember Medicare Open Enrollment...

Color Of Money

Three things to know about learning AI for career advancement

October 29, 2024

Share Tweet Email BPT Artificial intelligence (AI) undeniably continues to shape the workplace. Companies across the globe...

Seniors

Why prioritizing your health and maximizing wellness matters

October 21, 2024

Share Tweet Email BPT Do you put wellness visits and health screenings at the top of your...

Suburban News

Russian actors made fake video depicting mail-in ballots for Trump being destroyed, FBI says

November 3, 2024

Share Tweet Email A mail-in official ballot for the 2024 General Election in the United States is...

The Philadelphia Sunday Sun Staff