Ariel Winter's mother was an overbearing stage mom who constantly criticized Ariel and ordered her never to leave her side ... this according to a source on the set of one of Ariel's recent movies.

In June 2010, Ariel filmed "The Chaperone," starring Triple H. But according to a source who worked on the film, Ariel's mom Chrystal acted like she was the star of the movie.

We're told Chrystal had her own director's chair and listened to each take on her headphones. After each take, Chrystal would pull Ariel aside to tell her what she did wrong.

Our source says Chrystal opinions weren't reserved just for her daughter -- she would often tell the writers and director what she thought of each scene. Our source says Chrystal would even order around the production assistants ... making them fetch her food from Craft Services.

The movie starred many other child actors, but we're told Ariel never got a chance to hang out with them because she was not allowed to leave her mother's side.

Our source adds ... while Chrystal seemed like the stereotypical, overbearing stage mom ... they never witnessed any sort of abuse.

Chrystal's antics weren't just reserved for Ariel. TMZ spoke with Chrystal's brother-in-law, who told us Chrystal acted the same way with Ariel's sister Shanelle when she was growing up.