Docuseries ‘Waking Dream’ Follows Dreamers in Limbo

By Sameer Rao Nov 27, 2018

Limited series "Waking Dream" follows six Dreamers, immigrants of undocumented status who came to the United States as children, as they navigate a nation ruled by xenophobic immigration policy. Streaming for free via PBS’ Indie Lens Storycast YouTube channel, the show explores how they deal with the aftermath of the Trump administration’s decision to recind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which protected nearly 800,000 young immigrants from deportation.

The subjects of "Waking Dream" are looking for an avenue to citizenship in the face of possible deportation. Twin brothers John and James Sena pursue military service despite recent changes to the Military Accessions Vital to National Interest program that threaten their plans to achieve citizenship. Steve Li works to stay in touch with his parents after they are deported to China. Rossy Lima balances completing a doctorate in linguistics with navigating a pathway to permanent resident status. Dilan Petreza risks his relative protection to visit his father in Mexico for the first time in 14 years. And Marisol Camacho worries about losing her job’s health benefits and how that could impact her sons, who have ongoing medical issues. 

The first two episodes explore the idea of the "American dream" and the trauma of deportation. The third, which debuted online today (November 27), explores how the six subjects made it to the U.S. Watch it below; new episodes debut every Tuesday at 1 p.m. EST via Indie Lens Storycast.