Synopsis

Ashley Chea is a Cambodian American basketball phenom. HOME COURT, filmed over three years, is a coming-of-age story that relays the highs and lows of her immigrant family, surmounting racial and class differences, as well as personal trials that include a devastating knee injury. Despite the intensity of basketball recruiting, Ashley’s humor shines through and her natural talent inspires the support of those around her.

The film opens in Ashley’s sophomore year of high school. She shuttles between her home in a lower-income neighborhood in Los Angeles and her private school, Flintridge Prep, while traveling to youth basketball tournaments and visiting colleges around the country. Ashley’s parents work long hours at their donut shop, so her coach, Jayme Kiyomura Chan, steps in where they cannot, taking Ashley to doctor visits and helping her get her driver’s permit. Her mom, Lida, says that no one in her family supported Ashley playing basketball, but they know that this avenue gives her the opportunity to be the first in her family to attend college.

With the pressure of being one of the top basketball recruits in the country, tensions rise as Ashley decides between college offers. Her dad favors nearby UC Berkeley, but she chooses Princeton University, feeling more at home with the coaches and players there. During her senior year, Ashley leads her basketball team to victory in an upset against their rivals, with her family, friends, and Princeton’s head coach cheering her on from the sidelines. The film culminates in the bittersweet moments of Ashley leaving for college with her family.

Film Participants

Ashley Chea (she/her): Ashley is a Cambodian American high school student who navigates playing basketball at the highest level receiving countless offers from top universities like Yale before she begins her sophomore year. She is discovering that her basketball skills will not only fulfill her dreams of being the first in her family to attend college but is inspiring many around the world.
Jayme Kiyomura Chan (she/her): Jayme is Ashley’s high school coach at Flintridge Prep who grew up in the Asian American leagues. Her uncle, Frank Kiyomura, began the Yonsei Basketball Association, which continues to provide Japanese American leagues with community. Jayme is a wife, a mom of three children, and a busy caterer who provides weekly meals for over 200 people.
Baov Chea (he/him) and Lida Chea (she/her): Ashley’s father, Baov, came to America in 1996 when he was 14 years old with his mother, brother, and sister. They were mugged during the journey and arrived in America with nothing. Lida, Ashley’s mother, arrived eight years later. Both Baov and Lida’s families suffered trauma during the Khmer Rouge from 1975-1979 where the ruling regime were responsible for the deaths of millions of Cambodians. Baov works as a mechanic for an Acura auto shop and also helps Lida run the donut shop they just purchased in 2020. Lida works 7 days per week, often 18 hours per day. In addition to managing her donut shop, Lida works as a bookkeeper at night for another small company. Both Baov and Lida endure the costs of overworking and not seeing their children in order to make ends meet.

Director's Statement

Throughout my 18-year career as a filmmaker, I’ve made short films and commercial work, refining the craft of telling impactful stories with concision. I’m thrilled to be directing HOME COURT, my first feature-length film.

Four years ago, fellow filmmaker, Jenn Lee Smith asked if I knew anything about the Asian American basketball leagues. Her daughter was invited to join and she discovered that its history began in the 1920s with Japanese Americans forming their own leagues due to discrimination. My husband and his family played in these leagues. His cousin, Jaime Hagiya, was a star player at USC and introduced us to Jayme Kiyomura Chan and Ashley Chea. Jenn and I understood quickly that this was the story we wanted to tell: one of holding space for joy and heartache that explores the high stakes of following the American dream.

I see pieces of Ashley’s story echoed in my own Japanese-Jewish American children. Cultures and identities sacrificed as each generation assimilates in America. I didn’t even know I was Jewish until I was an adult, due to anti-semitism when my ancestors immigrated. My great grandmother erased our ancestry from our family story in an attempt to protect her son from discrimination. I harbored the pain of the generational shame until I reclaimed my Jewish identity as my own. I hope HOME COURT can give each viewer an opportunity to reflect on their own family's assimilation stories and begin to heal the intergenerational wounds we can carry.

-Erica Tanamachi

Visit the official Home Court Film Website