Sun Bo (Canada)
Excellence Award
Author Bio:
Sun Bo is a prominent Chinese-Canadian writer and screenwriter, serving as the president of the Canada-China Writers Association and editor-in-chief of a Canadian online television network. He has published more than ten novels, including Return Flow and Tears of the Camellia, with some works translated into English, French, Korean, and Japanese. He has written screenplays such as April Days in Lizhuang, Give You a Hug, Chinese Prescription, and Made in China. Sun Bo was the screenwriter for the 30-episode TV series Misplaced Your Hand and has directed multiple television series. He has received over 60 literary awards. His film scripts Back to Simplicity and Give You a Hug won top honors in the 8th Canada-China International Film Festival and the 2nd World Chinese Film & TV Outstanding Script Awards, respectively. Chinese Prescription received the first World Chinese Film & TV Adaptation Award and the inaugural Heroic Sons & Daughters Cup Script Award. His 20-episode TV series Made in China won the Ordos Literature Award, the Zhongshan Cup Overseas Chinese Literature Award, and the Beijing Municipal Radio & TV Outstanding Script Award.
Award-winning Work: Mom, I’m Home (60 episodes)
Synopsis:
In the summer of 2021, following the COVID-19 lockdown lift in Los Angeles, the Westside “Lucky Pearl Milk Tea Shop” bustled with customers. Thirty years prior, Li Dawei and Li Anna had emigrated from Shanghai and Taipei, leaving behind their careers as a teacher and a nurse to open a milk tea shop, raising their “banana” children, Daniel and Jessica, with great care. Daniel earned a master’s degree in computer science from Harvard and became the vice president of an AI company in New York. Jessica, the “Milk Tea Princess,” pursued an MBA at UCLA.
However, misfortune strikes. Li Anna is diagnosed with breast cancer, and Li Dawei suffers a relapse of heart disease, casting a shadow over the family. The couple bravely continues to manage the shop, while Jessica takes charge of the business, ignoring the persistent pursuit of wealthy suitor Allen. Daniel, despite threats from his fiancée Salome to break up, quits his high-paying job in New York and returns to Los Angeles, pushing open the door and exclaiming, “Mom, I’m home!”—bringing Li Anna to tears. The siblings resolve to run the milk tea shop and expand their parents’ American dream, though the parents wish to sell the store and encourage their children to pursue other opportunities. Through persistence and negotiation, the siblings persuade their parents to stay and focus on recovery.
Allen, CEO of Wolf Film, attempts to kidnap Jessica at her school in pursuit of her. Days later, Jessica mistakenly believes Allen is stalking her while escorting her mother to a hospital, but the misunderstanding is resolved when she learns Allen is visiting Li Anna’s doctor, Dr. Wolf, and filming a cancer documentary. Jessica’s perception of Allen changes, and she helps convince her mother to participate, showcasing Li Anna’s resilience. Salome, unable to endure long-distance romance, resigns from her investment bank job in New York and joins the Li family in Los Angeles, supporting Li Anna through treatment.
To modernize the milk tea shop, Daniel develops a dedicated app and launches healthy snacks, leveraging AI to target the college market. At the UCLA branch, a new “bursting pearls” drink sparks a trend. The siblings plan a new downtown location, but Salome’s proposal to manage it is rejected; the Li family believes a Harvard MBA like her should aim higher. Her real estate tycoon parents, the Marchands, appear at the branch opening, pledging to fund ten new stores across Greater Los Angeles. Daniel learns Salome, his five-year girlfriend, is a hidden “rich second generation,” surprising him.
By spring 2022, Li Anna completes radiation therapy successfully, regaining her hair, while Jessica finishes her MBA. During the 30th anniversary of the milk tea shop, Daniel establishes “Lucky Group” as chairman and CEO, Jessica becomes general manager overseeing seven branches, and Salome serves as CFO. The tenth branch and central kitchen open before Christmas, and Daniel and Salome celebrate their wedding in the Beverly Hills mansion gifted by the Marchands, featuring a helipad and serving as Lucky Group headquarters, symbolizing the Li family’s dream realized.
In 2023, Li Anna’s cancer documentary airs on television, inspiring countless viewers and attracting franchisees, signing 30 stores in three months. Salome gives birth to twins, bringing joy to the family. Daniel plans to invest in an eco-friendly tableware factory, but a dispute arises with Salome over costs. The Marchands mediate, offering their Mexico factory for production and distribution across 400 hotels, resolving the issue. Allen invests in Lucky Group as a technical advisor, continuing to court Jessica, who remains hesitant.
Later, Salome narrowly survives a park accident before childbirth and delivers twins via emergency cesarean. In early 2024, Li Anna faces breast cancer recurrence, undergoing mastectomy and reconstruction with top doctors consulted by Allen’s mother. Following chemotherapy, her condition stabilizes. Daniel continues franchise expansions, nearly reaching a hundred stores. He survives a car accident caused by a drunk driver with only minor injuries, returning home to Li Anna, who embraces him tearfully as he says, “Mom, I’m home.”
During the 2024 Mid-Autumn Festival, the Li family hosts a dinner at their Beverly Hills mansion, welcoming the Marchands by helicopter. Watching the moon and seeing the twins play, the family celebrates reunion and warmth. Lucky Group reaches 100 stores, and Daniel ambitiously aims for 1,000 nationwide in three years, planning an IPO. While Jessica and the Marchands support expansion, Li Dawei, Li Anna, and Salome urge caution. Allen arrives with 99 roses, leaving open the question of whether Jessica will accept his three-year devotion. Amid the mansion’s brilliant lights, the Li family’s dream of happiness continues to shine.
Professional Commentary:
This series uses a Chinese milk tea shop as the narrative hub to weave family bonds, entrepreneurial ambition, and cross-cultural romance. Dramatic highlights include the ups and downs of the milk tea family, battles with cancer, and resolution of misunderstandings. The integration of AI technology with traditional craftsmanship creates a warm and inspirational immigrant saga, showcasing the resilience and dreams of a new-generation Chinese family. It is a micro-series with strong potential for cinematic and television adaptation.
