In the short film “My Mother’s Jade”, East meets West in this all too familiar drama about a tiger mom and her teen daughter, jade, culture clash, and White boyfriends. Ling, born and raised in the U.S., has a tendency toward American things: she speaks English even when spoken to in Chinese, isn’t very conservative about her clothing (to her Asian Tiger Mom’s dismay), and is secretly dating a White boy whose calling in life is rock ‘n roll. One night, Ling’s mom walks in on what looks like secret boyfriend halfway through the window and into Ling’s bed. What starts as a lecture on house rules escalates into a fight that leaves Ling feeling she’s lost her mother, and her mother wondering if they ever had each other in the first place.

Here’s more from writer/director Irene Young:

MY MOTHERS JADE is a script i’ve held onto for 3 years.
a true story about breaking my Mom’s heart.
its about forgiveness and love and making mistakes.
its about meeting halfway because being raised Chinese in the US was hard for me [and for her]

MY MOTHERS JADE is an apology
a means of reconciliation
it says, “I love you & I understand.”

MY MOTHERS JADE is your story, too.
its about family and family is never perfect
it has its ups, it has its downs, but it is constant
and [that] is worth saying something.

MY MOTHERS JADE will be honest
will be poetic
will be realized with your help.

Look for it coming soon. The short stars Julie Zhan, Ying Yuen, and Zach Gallen.

My Mother’s Jade Trailer