Two young children living outside Boston are left to fend for themselves when their mother gets embroiled in a pyramid scheme and disappears. After being evicted from their home, the Cheng family finds that times are tighter than ever. Hardworking single mom and recent Boston transplant Elaine tries desperately to find the means to support her young children, Raymond and Tina. They squat in a model apartment in an unfinished building, but try to maintain a normal life. Elaine juggles a number of jobs, including working for a questionable pyramid scheme. Meanwhile, Raymond and Tina become latch-key kids and find amusement in building childish inventions. When Elaine doesn't return home one night, things take a turn for the worse. Nobody knows the kids are home alone, and they are left to fend for themselves. As the days pass, Raymond realizes he needs to come up with a plan to take care of his little sister. Based on Tze Chun's own award-winning short film, WINDOWBREAKER, which screened at the 2007 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, CHILDREN OF INVENTION is a drama about the influence of an adult world on children, the immigrant mentality, and shortcuts to the American dream. “I was writing a personal story about the world I grew up in—a subculture of Americans trying to get-rich-quick in order to get themselves out of a financial hole. I didn’t foresee the current financial crisis. But with the economy tanking now and foreclosures going through the roof, it seems like everyone’s living through some version of what the Chengs go through in the film.” —Tze Chun View: Children of Invention Trailer
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