FAMILY’S FIRST 150 DAYS AS CANADIANS
New film chronicles the life of Filipino-Canadians as they adjust to their new home
Canada is built by immigrants. So on the 150th birthday of the nation, Toronto filmmaker Diana Dai decided to follow one newly immigrated family around for 150 days.
The result is My First 150 Days, which chronicles the life of one Filipino-Canadian family as they struggle to adjust to their new lives.
Melona Banico arrived in Canada in 2007 and worked as a caregiver. In the interim, she was separated from her three children, Judelyn, Jaeh and Jade, and grandson Clyde.
They arrive in Canada in January to be greeted with freezing temperatures and culture shock, and a profound sense of alienation from their mother.
The documentary examines the lives of immigrants in an intensely personal and intimate way, as told through the lens of Dai, who is also an immigrant. It’s a uniquely Canadian story, but the theme is universal. The show airs Wednesday at 9 p.m. on TVO.
The Star caught up with Dai, a former news anchor on OMNI TV, who won a Gemini Award for China’s Earthquake: The People in Pictures, to ask about her latest project. The interview has been edited and condensed.
Given that you’ve worked on bigscale documentaries, including looking at the aftermath of SARS and the political ramifications of earthquakes in China, this seems to be your most intimate film yet.
Whether it’s earthquakes or looking at SARS, I’ve always been interested in the human story and the impact on people’s lives. The immigrant story is perhaps the most personal. Canada was built by immigrants originally from Europe and now you have different countries coming. But they all face the same challenges.
Because I’m an immigrant myself, it helped me a great deal to understand this family and what they went through.
I went to England to study. I had no one there. And when I came to Canada there was nobody here. I had to start from scratch. So I could completely identify about the language barrier, finding a job, the sense of loneliness. I felt what they felt.
The documentary comes out not just on Canada’s birthday, but also during a politically charged time where immigration, particularly in the United States and in the era of a President Trump, seems to be a dirty word. What do you hope is the takeaway from this?
I really hope my film can make viewers understand what immigrants went through. Immigrants contribute a lot to this country. They’re looking for a better life and the story of the Banico family mirrors all the struggles and hardships that many immigrants face. But that also, despite all that is going on in the world, Canada is still a very accepting country.
Why did you pick the Banico family? What was that process like?
The concept was to do a documentary on the 150th anniversary of Canada on an immigrant family. And the first few months are the most intense part of their lives as they try to adapt. We tried to find a family that was multi-generational. Every generation has a different challenge, so we could explore different perspectives. Our associate producer, Rita Kotzia, found the family through an immigration lawyer.
When they came here they were like tourists.
But the honeymoon only lasted a couple of weeks. But then, like in many cases, life wasn’t what the kids expected.
And there was this huge burden on Melona’s shoulders. She came to Canada for her children. She works incredibly hard. She was a teacher in the Philippines. But she sacrificed herself, she came here as a nanny. But then, like many in her situation, she couldn’t spend time with her children and they are really strangers in a way. There is a great deal of adjustment. But she is a fighter who never gave up.
There is a point where Melona loses her job and she has trouble paying rent. At what point do you feel compelled to cross journalistic lines?
As a documentary filmmaker, I can’t interfere in their lives, obviously. We have to let their story unfold naturally. When Melona lost her job it was heartbreaking. We thought about helping her with finding a job. But we couldn’t do it. We should not interfere with their lives. We have to let the story unfold as it would have with any other immigrant. And it was also tough to film. This is something so personal. I was worried. I couldn’t sleep. They could walk away any time. It’s tough having cameras in your face. We shot many hours of footage — much more than normal — to get them to open up. And there were times when we thought it wouldn’t happen. At one point they had a big fight. They didn’t want to be filmed anymore or talk about their problems in front of the camera. It’s understandable, they were worried they would look bad. No one was there to support them. They really felt socially isolated. For the kids they are used to being very active and sociable in the Philippines. And now they are stuck in a two-bedroom apartment with no one to talk to. We tried very hard to be patient and to make sure that the filming would be a good experience.
What did the family think when they saw themselves onscreen for the first time? Have you kept in touch?
I think they were overwhelmed. You could see the tears in their eyes when we first screened it. There was all the hardship they faced and went through, but they got through it. And it was all real. We still keep in touch. Melona used to be a teacher and she is now is taking a teaching course on weekdays.
On the weekends (she) works in a restaurant. She continues to set an example for her kids. And their relationship is so much better. They’re young, they’ve adapted so well. They are Canadians.