Three Chinese-born girls who were given up for adoption and raised by different American parents discovered via at-home DNA tests that they were all cousins — and, after bonding over their shared ancestry, the trio traveled to China together in search of their birth parents.
Their incredible story plays out in the upcoming documentary Found, which premieres on Netflix on October 20.
The hour-and-a-half-long film follows Lily Bolka, Chloe Lipitz, and Sadie Mangelsdorf, who met as teens after doing 23andMe and in 2019 returned to their country of birth on a mission to meet the families that gave them up.
Reunited! Three Chinese-born girls who were given up for adoption and raised by different American parents discovered via at-home DNA tests that they were all cousins
Journey: After bonding over their shared ancestry, the trio traveled to China together in search of their birth parents
The stars: Lily, Chloe, and Sadie (left to right) are the subjects of a new documentary coming to Netflix
After Lily, Chloe, and Sadie each did 23andMe, they found their shared ancestry and connected online
‘It all stated when I did 23andMe,’ Chloe says in a new trailer. ‘And that’s how I found Lily and Sadie.
‘It opened up new ideas about our adoption,’ adds Lily.
Together, they enlisted the help of My China Roots, a history and travel group that helps Chinese people around the world trace their lineage and find relatives.
‘Looking for one’s lost history is important,’ researcher Liu Hao, a researcher with the company, says. ‘My job is to track down those people who might have a connection with Lily, Sadie, and Chloe.’
The young women seem to have some luck, with Hao telling Lily that she may have found her birth parents.
‘I haven’t known them for long,’ one of the girls says of her cousins. ‘You just know they know what you feel’
Sadie (second from left), Chloe (second from right), and Lily (far right) all traveled to China together with a film crew
Digging: They enlisted the help of My China Roots, a history and travel group that helps Chinese people around the world trace their lineage and find relatives
‘Looking for one’s lost history is important,’ researcher Liu Hao, a researcher with the company, says
Lily decides to travel to China to find them, and along with her adoptive mother, Chloe and Sadie come along for the trip.
‘I haven’t known them for long,’ one of the girls says of her cousins. ‘You just know they know what you feel.’
The film follows them as they travel together to China along with a film crew — including Chloe’s aunt, Amanda Lipitz, who directed the film.
The film is filled with emotions. In addition to some tourist fun like a stop at the Great Wall, the cousins also visit their orphanages and reunite with the nannies who cared for them as babies.
As the trailer premiered this week, Lily took to Instagram to reflect, calling the experience ‘absolutely life changing.’
Exploring: In addition to some tourist fun like a stop at the Great Wall, the cousins also visit their orphanages and reunite with the nannies who cared for them as babies
Searching: The young women seem to have some luck, with Hao telling Lily that she may have found her birth parents
‘I could not be more grateful for this journey and opportunity,’ Lily said
‘Asian American women are an extremely underrepresented group in film and television, and I’m sure that was a motivating factor to them,’ director Amana Lipitz said
‘This is a film about the way we are all connected, set against a backdrop of circumstances that changed the course of many lives,’ she added
‘I could not be more grateful for this journey and opportunity,’ she said.
‘I am so excited for what is to come in the future! I am eternally grateful for all of the unconditional love and support from my friends and family!’
Meanwhile, Lipitz, the director, discussed the importance of the trip to The Hollywood Reporter.
‘Asian American women are an extremely underrepresented group in film and television, and I’m sure that was a motivating factor to them,’ she said. ‘It felt like a moment of “Let me tell my story. Let me show people that I’m here.”‘
‘This is a film about the way we are all connected, set against a backdrop of circumstances that changed the course of many lives,’ she added.
‘It is for anyone who has the faith, courage, and strength to find out who they really are.’