Survivor-Led Media Guide
ADDRESSING HARMFUL MEDIA PORTRAYALS
The media often perpetuates harmful and misleading narratives about human trafficking — focusing on sensationalized stories or reinforcing stereotypes that fail to reflect the complex realities survivors face. These portrayals can distort public understanding and ultimately undermine efforts to support those impacted. To help shift the narrative, this page features a curated list of survivor-vetted films that offer more accurate, respectful depictions grounded in lived experience.
Special thanks to Sabra Boyd for her leadership and dedication in assembling and reviewing these important resources.
Featured Films
Familial Child Trafficking
Animal Kingdom (2010 – Australia)
Scripted feature film
A gritty crime drama that follows a teenage boy who, after the death of his mother, is pulled into the violent criminal enterprise run by his extended family. The film explores how familial ties, coercion, and poverty can trap individuals in systems of exploitation.
Themes:
- Familial Labor Trafficking
- Forced Criminality / Coercion
- Addiction
- Poverty
- Organized Crime
Labor Trafficking
The Workers Cup (2018)
Documentary
This film follows migrant workers in Qatar who are building the stadiums for the 2022 World Cup and participating in a corporate-sponsored soccer tournament meant to boost morale. Through their stories, the documentary exposes exploitative labor practices, dangerous working conditions, and the broader systems of racism and poverty that enable labor trafficking.
Themes:
- Labor Trafficking
- Forced Labor
- Immigrant Rights
- Sporting Events
- Poverty
- Racism
- Construction Industry
Survivors' Lives and Entrepreneurship
Survivor Made (2024)
Documentary
This documentary highlights the journeys of human trafficking survivors who have built their own businesses and initiatives, showcasing how investment in survivor-led enterprises creates pathways to long-term stability and community impact. It sheds light on the economic disparities survivors face and emphasizes the importance of social investment and entrepreneurship as tools for empowerment.
Themes:
- Trafficking survivors’ lives
- Investing in survivors
- Entrepreneurship and survivor-led and owned businesses
- Economic opportunities
- Disparity
- Poverty
- Social investment
Survivor-Recommended Films and & Series
| DOCUMENTARIES | TV/SERIES | SCRIPTED FILMS |
|---|---|---|
|
Survivor Made (2024) |
Truth Be Told (2023 - Season 3) |
Palm Trees and Power Lines (2022) |
|
Shiny Happy People (2023) |
Orange is the New Black (2013-2019) |
Nona (2017) |
| The Stroll (2023) | Saturday Church (2017) | |
| Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields (2023) | Animal Kingdom (2010) | |
| California's Forgotten Children (2023) | Under the Same Moon (La Misma Luna) (2007) | |
| Black Girls Missing (2023) | Fast-Food Nation (2006) | |
| We Need to Talk About Cosby (2022) | Holes (2003) | |
| Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey (2022) | Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002) | |
| Ghislaine Maxwell: Filthy Rich (2022) | ||
| Unseamly: The Investigation of Peter Nygård (2021) | ||
| This Adventure Called California (2021) | ||
| American Street Kid (2020) | ||
| Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich (2020) | ||
| Surviving Epstein (2020) | ||
| Piers Kids (2019) | ||
| Surviving Kelly (2019) | ||
| The Workers Cup (2018) | ||
| 13th | ||
| Very Young Girls (2007) | ||