Fifteen Digital Media students and their professor, Mark Volkers, have produced a 54-minute documentary giving an unforgettable and very personal look at the 1 billion people who currently live in the slums of the Developing World.
"The Fourth World" (www.fourthworldfilm.com) travels way past the statistics to meet the individuals caught up in the largest people migration in the history of the world. The United Nations tells us that the 1 billion slum current slum dwellers could triple by 2050 as our global economy continues to shift and as people continue to migrate from village to city.
"The Fourth World" (as of this writing) has television deals in Portugal, Ireland, Greece and with Al Jazeera Worldwide. FMG educational media has also contracted with Prairie Grass Productions for global educational sales.
Volkers lived and traveled in the Developing World for many years before starting the Digital Media Production major at Dordt College in Sioux Center, Iowa (www.dordt.edu). He's an award-winning film maker with more than 20 national and international awards for his work. He and his students traveled to Guatemala City; Nairobi, Kenya; Manila, Philippines; Dakar, Senegal and Mumbai, India to tell the stories of individuals caught up in massive migration. Those individual stories--with people who have names and aspirations--cut through the dulled senses that statistics so often produce.
The film has screened at festivals around the world and has taken many awards. (See partial list below).
The film is available on DVD and on Amazon, YouTube, Google Play and iTunes (coming soon).
www.fourthworldfilm.com

Golden Reel Award: Nevada Film Festival
Redemptive Storyteller Award: Redemptive Film Festival
Best Documentary Feature: Third World Indie Film Festival
Walt Ratternam Humanitarian Award: Columbia Gorge International Film Festival
Best Documentary: Treasure Coast International Film Festival
Best Documentary Feature: New York/Los Angeles International Film Festival
Aloha Accolade Award in Documentary: Honolulu Film Awards
Telly Awards Bronze: Cinematography
Telly Awards Silver: Documentary
Award of Excellence: The Indie Fest
Honorable Mention: International Film Festivals for Peace, Inspiration and Equality
Honorable Mention: Commfest Global International Film Festival
Merit Award for Presentation of a Critical Issue: Montana Cine Film Festival
Award of Merit: Lucerne International Film Festival