An independent film on the twisted plight of a Filipino migrant worker in Hong Kong will soon hit televisions and digital platforms in North America after its production outfit forged a partnership with an independent film distributor in California.

 “Wan Chai Baby,” the first full-length feature produced by Dragon Horse Films Limited, will be distributed in Canada, the United States, and Puerto Rico through an agreement the Hong Kong-based production outfit signed with Vanguard Cinema, which has licensed home video (DVD), video-on-demand (VOD), and TV rights in the said areas.

 Set during the British handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997, “Wan Chai Baby” tells about Tess, a young and conservative Filipino woman who initially works there as an “amah” (housemaid) in order to support her family back in a poor fishing village in the Philippines. 

Tess finds a friend in her employer, Jenny, an American who is unhappily married to a Chinese man. The latter introduces the Filipino housemaid to the Wan Chai nightclub district, where her life would take an unexpected turn after Jenny dies from a “misadventure”.

 “’Wan Chai Baby’ is a film we very much like,” said Vanguard Cinema CEO Freyr Thor. “It’s a good fit with our philosophy, our line-up of quality independent cinema, and our mission of promoting new talent in cinema.”

 The film stars Chanel Latorre, who also appeared in the independent film, “Captive,” by Cannes best director Brillante Mendoza.