SEX+MONEY: A National Search for Human Worth
is a feature length film that documents a group of students as they travel in an RV across the United States, seeking to understand how the sexual exploitation of children has become the nation's fastest growing form of organized crime.
As the students encounter the brave men and women who are fighting on the front lines of the modern abolitionist movement, they begin to consider what further action can be taken to bring an end to such obscene forms of injustice.
Autumn Rae
In 2007, a group of students embarked on a journey through 20+ nations on every inhabitable continent, motivated by their love for photography and their passion for justice. At the outset, their experiences seemed diverse, even random. However, a common thread of human suffering would soon emerge as their travels exposed them to a dark, seldom discussed side of humanity-- children being bought and sold to satisfy the sexual pleasures of other humans.
As they returned to the United States in 2008, the students were surprised to find that the same injustice was happening on the soil of their own country. Unfortunately, a large percentage of Americans are still unaware that such a grotesque crime could ever be taking place in their midst.
Sex+Money: A National Search for Human Worth is a feature length film that will document the group of students as they travel in an RV for a second journey, this time across the United States, seeking to understand how the sexual exploitation of children has become the nation's fastest growing form of organized crime. As the students encounter the brave men and women who are fighting on the front lines of the modern abolitionist movement, they begin to consider what further action can be taken to bring an end to such obscene forms of injustice.
The final movement of Sex + Money portrays the students quest to help make
America the first slave-free nation in the world and to inspire others to do the same.
Executive Producer Morgan Perry studied film and photography in nearly 30 nations on every inhabitable continent while pursuing her degree in Mass Media from the University of the Nations. Her classroom became the front lines for journalistic media, including the San Tribe of Bushmen in the Kalahari Desert and the center of turmoil in the West Bank, Palestine. Morgan played a vital role in producing the Sex+Money: A Global Search for Human Worth book, and now she is taking leadership in adapting the book to the Sex+Money documentary.
Director Joel Angyal is a British national who graduated from the University of the Nations Film School. Joel, who is fluent in four languages and has traveled to over fifty countries, thrives in situations that present new challenges. During Joel's travels he worked with Disney, ABC, Walden Media, FOX, and numerous independent productions. In addition he directed and produced music videos and a number of award winning short films. He has shot on location in the Sahara desert, Romania, Hungary, Canada, Brazil, Uganda, India, Nepal, Nigeria, and the U.S.
Screenwriter Kevin Miller is a versatile screenwriter who has applied his craft to feature films, documentaries, short films, and television. Recent productions include the following documentaries, docudramas, and feature films:
After (2006)
Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed (2008)
Hakani (2008)
With God On Our Side (2009)
spOILed (2010)
Saints and Sinners (2010)
In addition to his work as a screenwriter, Kevin has written, co-written,
and edited over 40 books, fiction and non-fiction.
Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney is the Co-Chair and Co-Founder of the Congressional Human Trafficking Caucus. Congresswoman Maloney is an original cosponsor of H.R. 3887, the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, which passed the House overwhelmingly in December 2007. For the past seven years, she has worked to combat sex trafficking internationally, nationally, and in her own district of New York City. In 2006, a landmark law was enacted, making the United States a leader in combating the worldwide affliction of sex trafficking. That law incorporated key provisions of the End Demand for Sex Trafficking Act championed by Congresswomen Maloney and Deborah Pryce (R-OH).
Chyng Sun, Ph.D. is a filmmaker and Clinical Associate Professor of Media Studies, at McGhee Liberal Arts School of Continuing and Professional Studies at New York University. Her research interests include media literacy; race, gender and sexuality in media; and audience research/media effects. With Miguel Picker, Sun produced the documentaries, The Price of Pleasure: Pornography, Sexuality and Relationships; Mickey Mouse Monopoly: Disney, Childhood and Corporate Power; and Beyond Good and Evil: Media, Children and Violent Times. She has been researching the topic of pornography since the summer of 2004. Together with Robert Wosnitzer, and two other scholars, Sun designed a large-scale research project on the content of the most-rented pornographic movies of 2005. A portion of her research may be viewed in her documentary, The Price of Pleasure: Pornography, Sexuality and Relationships.
David L. Cunningham, an acclaimed international filmmaker, has directed and produced motion picture and television projects in over 40 countries worldwide. Some of his most recent projects include The Seeker: The Dark is Rising (Fox/Walden), The Path to 9/11 (Disney/ABC), television mini-series Little House on the Prairie (Fox), To End All Wars (Fox) and the docudrama Hakani for PhotogenX. David traveled extensively throughout his childhood with his parents, Loren and Darlene Cunningham, founders of YWAM (Youth With A Mission)- an interdenominational Christian organization serving in over 100 countries. His experiences visiting refugee camps, slums, bustling cities, and exotic cultures, in conjunction with his degree in film from University of Southern California, became an important inspiration for Cunningham as a filmmaker.
Paul and Susi Childers are the founders of PhotogenX, an organization that specializes in using various forms of media to raise awareness about global injustices and to promote social change. For over 20 years, Susi Childers has pursued photography as an art and a profession. She has used her camera to raise awareness about community development projects in Ethiopia, Afghanistan, Nepal, India, and Brazil, and to advocate for those who suffer injustice. Paul Childers is a much sought after lecturer and communicator on Biblical studies, leadership, and justice. Together they have worked in over 50 nations and have published five photographic works: The Eyes of Afghanistan; A Voice for the Voiceless; Unique: Faces of the Nations; 30 Days of Prayer for the Voiceless; and Hakani: A Voice for Life.
A Federal Agent that has been involved in local and federal law enforcement as an intelligence analyst for the past 10 years is advising us on the accuracy of statistics and information presented in the film. Their expertise is related to commercial sexual exploitation of children. They have been the recipient of federal awards for their intelligence work in assessing the issue of prostituted children in Los Angeles, CA, and the formation of a federal law enforcement task force to effectively address the problem.
Cameo Wallace an award-winning documentary and television producer, has developed and produced successful programming for ABC, CBS, NBC, A&E, History Channel, MTV, Discovery, TLC, MSNBC, Oxygen, and Food Network. The diversity of projects on which she has worked, inc luding the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives documentary and Swiss documentary Jugend ohne Drogen (Youth Without Drugs), and her involvement in philanthropic organizations as a strategic planning consultant and event producer, serve to join her profession with purposeful ventures. Her projects have required direct communication and coordination with domestic and foreign dignitaries, corporate executives, celebrities, volunteers, and individuals whose lives inspire participation in humanitarian endeavors. As a consultant, she has also worked with a variety of organizations on strategic initiatives, including branding, corporate partnerships, communications, media outreach, and fundraising, and has used her skills acquired through production to benefit those projects. Cameo has also coordinated and produced several large-scale events, including Presidential Inaugural events, Pope Benedict XIVs Mass at Nationals Stadium in Washington, DC, and the book launch of Growing Up Guggenheim, authored by Peter Lawson-Johnston, at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.
PROBLEM:
A majority of awareness on the issue of sex trafficking has been centered upon what the issue looks like in other countries, while many people have a hard time understanding what sex trafficking looks like on American soil. Often, citizens find it difficult to understand how their resources or talents can be used to fuel the abolitionist movement.
SEX+MONEY FILM WILL:
- Highlight the modern abolitionist movement to inspire people to take action.
- Promote Neighborhood Watch systems so that citizens can identify and inform local law enforcement agencies about sex trafficking in their communities.
-Expose different locations where sex trafficking takes place in the United States - from truck stops, to massage parlors, and malls.
There are only a few operating safe homes compared to how many victims are in need of services and rehabilitation.
-Identify established restoration facilities in America, and expose where there is a need.
- Research and adopt a comprehensive model that any church, small community, or business can use as a guideline to build and establish a proper restoration facility.
- A percentage of proceeds from the film will help support existing restoration homes.
There is a lack of central organization to help mobilize the masses and connect various anti-sex-trafficking causes.
- Partner with ENDSLAVERYNOW.COM which has a State-by-State Anti-Trafficking Directory, organizing and categorizing efforts by geographical location and spheres of society.
-Unique Communication Model will direct specific spheres of society (i.e. government; religion; family; education; economics; science + technology; communication; and arts + entertainment) to respond with the specific talents, services, and resources that each sphere has to offer.
When: July 2010 - December 2010
What: Post Production
Objectives: Edit the film and begin to plan the distribution tour
When: January 2011 - February 2011
What: Select Screenings
Objective: Begin to do select screening of the film as well as plan the 50 state distribution tour
When: March 2011 - June 2011
What: 50 State Distribution Tour!
Objective: Tour with the film, screening it in all 50 states!
POSTAL ADDRESS:
Sex and Money Team
photogenX
75-5851 Kuakini Highway #248
Kailua-Kona, HI 96740
EMAIL ADDRESS:
info_sexandmoneyfilm.com
Where do the proceeds go?
PhotogenX is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit. All donations go towards the production of the documentary Sex+Money: A National Search for Human Worth.
$1 USD from the sale of every book is given directly to help women and children in need in South Africa. The rest of the proceeds go to the Sex + Money campaign to help those who are victimized by sex trafficking.
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