Surviving Sex Trafficking 2022
Distributed by Collective Eye Films, 1315 SE 20th Ave. #3, Portland OR 97214; 971-236-2056
Produced by Siddhayatan Tirth
Directed by Sidhvi Siddhali Shree
Streaming, 71 mins
College - General Adult
Criminal Justice; Human Rights; Sex Trafficking; Social Justice
Date Entered: 05/31/2022
Reviewed by LaRoi Lawton, Library & Learning Resources Department, Bronx Community College of the City University of New York“Only 1% of trafficking victims manage to escape or be rescued”. So begins this documentary on Surviving Sex Trafficking. How do survivors of sex trafficking survive after the fact not only from the physical trauma but the psychological, visible and invisible; how do they fall back into society while looking normal to the rest of the world, yet reliving every moment of the sex trafficking experience as they interact with the people around them? This is an ‘adult” film that explores the underbelly of sex trafficking very few people really understand. And it is very painful to watch. Survivors need a ‘safe’ place to go when they escape this brutal environment. And that is just the beginning. The stories are gutting.
“Jain monk Sadhvi Siddhali Shree, the filmmaker behind a previous award-winning documentary “Stopping Traffic: The Movement to End Sex Traffic,” uncovers the depth of pain felt by survivors as well as if and how they can truly recover. Through conversations with the victims and trips to women’s shelters around the world, “Surviving Sex Trafficking” reveals their stories and how they escaped, how they continue to survive, and how they live day to day with the repressed trauma from the horrific events they experienced”.
Filmmaker Siddhali dives into this harsh stark reality in this latest documentary, on the tortured journey of these victims to their healing process. The physical and psychological scars remain but will these women ever heal?
This documentary is real, harsh and painful to watch so care should be foremost when showing to any ‘audience’.
Awards:Long Beach Indie, International Film Festival; Global Cinema Film Festival of Boston; Bronze Palm Award, (Mexico) International Film Festival; Show Me Justice Film Festival; 2022 Official Selection at Santa Fe Film Festival
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