The English-Romanian Adoptees Project was the first study to follow a cohort of children who had suffered periods of institutional deprivation through into adult life. To their surprise, researchers found that problems experienced by many of the Romanian adoptees were neurodevelopmental, suggesting that deprivation had affected brain development.

The film, with guidance from lead researcher Professor Sonuga-Barke, provides a clear introduction to a study that is changing the way we think about deprivation and development. Some of the findings surprised even the researchers,  and questioned many taken for granted assumptions about the effects of childhood deprivation.