When a Taiwanese American woman prepares lunches from her childhood, she struggles to forgive herself for pushing away her immigrant mother.

Director - Anne Hu

I was scrolling through my Facebook feed when suddenly a video called The Lunchbox Moment popped up on my screen. Curious, I clicked, and what quickly ensued was my deluge of tears. Stories of Asian Americans who were bullied for their homemade lunches sent me down memory lane, recalling my own painful memories of being teased for bringing my favorite home-cooked meal, zongzi, to school. Overwhelmed with emotion, all I could do was sit down and write "Lunchbox."

My mother wasn’t the “American” outwardly loving mom on the Disney shows. Coming from a poor upbringing in Taiwan, she didn’t understand the importance of “being there for your child.” To her, having a roof over your head and meals to eat were all you needed, and a greater expression of love than any American expression of love. She was physically and emotionally absent, and she could barely speak English. She didn’t understand me, and I didn’t understand her, culturally and sometimes literally. She passed on her love to me through the lunches she cooked for me.

Lunchbox is a love letter to my mother, and a catharsis for anyone who has experienced loss, regret, and being the “other.”

Mom, for all your strengths and imperfections, I love you. Thank you.