J.K. Rowling and Eddie Redmayne (Newt Scamander in the Fantastic Beasts prequels) walked the red carpet at a New York premiere preview of Finding the Way Home, a new HBO documentary which shines a spotlight on the painful realities of children living in orphanages and similar institutions.
The documentary features narration by Redmayne and follows the story of eight previously-institutionalised children who have been reunited with family or placed in loving foster homes.
The documentary is inspired by the work of Rowling’s Lumos Foundation, a charity founded by the Harry Potter author in 2005 to promote an end to the institutionalisation of children worldwide. Since 2016, the foundation has helped more than 17,000 institutionalised children through foster care, small group homes and finding adoptive parents.
While in New York, Rowling was honoured with the Ripple of Hope Award, a human rights award whose past recipients have included Barack Obama, George Clooney and Tim Cook.
Finding the Way Home will premiere on HBO on 18 December.