by Naomi Hamer

Over the last decade there have been a number of films produced to raise awareness about the trafficking, and often slavery, of children in the global sex trade. Many of these films have taken the form of documentaries, television serials or news specials such as the Channel 4/ ARTE France co-production The Child Sex Trade (2003) about the sex trade in Romania, and the documentary Stolen Lives: Children in the sex trade (1999), an expose about young people in the sex trade in Canada. However, a number of recent feature films have begun to address these issues through fictionalized accounts instead of documentary style reporting. On a positive note, this movement to fictional feature film will provide more opportunities to educate broader audiences about these issues. However, I do wonder about the problems that fictional films may pose (particularly high budget, Hollywood-style projects) with sensationalist or simplistic portrayals of characters, cultures and events.

On November 9, the film Holly (2006) opened in the US for a limited release. This film addresses the trafficking of children into sex work in Cambodia and Vietnam. The film follows an American dealer of stolen artefacts living in Cambodia (Ron Livingston) who befriends and then attempts to ‘save' Holly, a 12 year old Vietnamese girl (played by 14 year old Thuy Nguyen) who has been sold into the sex trade by her family.

Naomi Hamer is a PhD candidate at the Centre for the
Study of Children, Youth and Media, The London
Knowledge Lab, Institute of Education, University of
London, UK. Her current research focuses on the
reading and media cultures of preadolescent girls.

The film is backed by "the K11 project", named after the red light district of Phnom Phen, and part of the Red Light Children Campaign, a global human rights initiative to raise awareness about child trafficking in the sex trade. As part of this initiative, Holly was produced in tandem with two documentaries on children in the sex trade. Initially released at a number of film festivals in 2006, most reviews of the film tend to praise its subject matter, and critique its other cinematic qualities.

Dealing with related material, the recently released Trade (2007), starring Kevin Kline, employs a melodramatic, Hollywood-style, portrayal of characters and events to address human trafficking between Mexico and the US. These films will certainly raise awareness of issues and garner emphathy for the victims. But will these films work to also sensationalize the issues, not to mention demonize the cultures and people where these films are located?

Lilja 4-Ever (2002), directed by Swedish indie-film maker Lukas Moodyson (Show me Love and Together), is one of the few films I have watched that successfully deals with this subject matter in a fictional and artistic manner. The film follows the experiences of Lilja, a 16 year old girl living in the former Soviet Union, who becomes a victim to child sex trafficking and slavery between Western and Eastern Europe (it is filmed in Estonia but this is never made explicit). When her mother abandons her to move to the United States, leaving her little money and support, Lilja makes extra money working as a sex worker in a night club. However, the line between sex work and child trafficking is crossed when Lilja is convinced by her ‘boyfriend' to fly to Sweden where he has promised her a job and apartment.

UK release dates for Holly are not listed at this time.But to find out more information or check out the trailer click here.

The strength of this film lies in its nuanced portrayal of Lilja's point of view. Rather than focusing on an adult man trying to rescue a young girl (like in Holly or Trade), the central relationship in the film captures the solace found in a poignant and believable friendship between Lilja and a young boy Voldya who has been abused and rejected by his father . Although the film is hauntingly melancholy, if not relentlessly bleak at parts, Moodyson's almost surrealistic style is visually original and emotionally powerful.