J.K. Rowling made a rare appearance, attending the premiere of the HBO documentary
Finding the Way Home, in New York City on Wednesday night, alongside
Fantastic Beasts series star Eddie Redmayne, who narrated the doc.
The documentary, inspired by the work of Rowling's charity Lumos, focuses on eight orphans who were reunited with family members or placed in loving foster homes after experiencing the trauma of institutionalization.
The film is set to premiere on HBO starting December 18. The trailer can be watched here.
Photos from the event, with Rowling, Redmayne, and several of the children featured in the documentaries with their loved ones, can be seen here.
The synopsis for the documentary can be read here.
Quote:
Focusing on the stories of eight children who have been reunited with family members or placed in loving foster homes after experiencing the trauma of institutionalization., Finding the Way Home highlights the painful realities of the eight million children living in orphanages and other institutions around the world. The film shares insights from families, social workers and dedicated foster parents to illustrate what it truly means to be home.
Heartbreaking, enlightening and uplifting, Finding the Way Home visits overcrowded children's institutions, nurturing foster homes and reunited households to trace a complex path through both state-run and private orphanages – from Moldova to Nepal. Inspired by the work of J.K. Rowling's foundation Lumos, directed and produced by Emmy®-winners Jon Alpert and Matthew O'Neill, and with narration by Oscar®-winning actor Eddie Redmayne, Finding the Way Home brings to light the many factors – poverty, discrimintation, drug addiction, war, natural disaster – that bring children to these institutions, and instills hope for a world where every child has a home.