My Wedding and Other Secrets 2011

A Romeo and Juliet-inspired romance unfolds in Auckland, New Zealand. Emily Chu is the daughter of traditional Chinese parents whose only wishes are that she marry a good Chinese boy and become a doctor. But life has different plans: she dreams of becoming a world-famous director and falls in love with a white university student, James Harrison.

When two kindred nerd spirits fall into love, they must navigate the expectations of her family. As a Kiwi-Asian, she struggles with the idea of being a banana—yellow on the outside, white on the inside—while her father, Dr Chu, holds a stricter view and carries the memory of past threats to disown her sister. The romance is tender but fraught, and their relationship begins to move in secret as Emily pursues her creative dreams and James encourages the collaboration of their futures.

Their life becomes even more complicated when Emily and James enter into a secret marriage, while Emily works on a documentary that reflects their world and the couple faces James’s ultimatum to learn Mandarin or lose Emily. This collision of art, identity, and love adds pressure to a relationship already tested by cultural expectations and family duty. The days fill with balancing cameras and recording gear, late-night conversations about language and belonging, and the constant awareness that every choice could pull them apart or bind them closer.

Ultimately, Emily is forced to weigh a difficult decision: stay with the long-suffering James or honor the sacrifices her parents have made to establish their family in New Zealand. The film invites viewers to consider how love and family require sacrifice, and how not every path can lead to happiness, even when two people share a deep connection.