The IOM office in South Africa is backing the production of a
feature film which seeks to explore the complex themes of
migration, xenophobia, identity, fear and reconciliation.

The movie titled "Man on Ground" is centred on Ade, a successful
Nigerian banker based in the UK and Femi, his estranged brother who
lives and works in South Africa.

Ade soon discovers that his brother has been missing for a week.
He sets out to investigate Femi's mysterious disappearance,
reconstructing the pieces of his everyday life and the cruel
hardships he endured just to survive.

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Link alt="" border="0" height="12" hspace="0" src=
"/jahia/webdav/site/myjahiasite/shared/shared/mainsite/graphics/interface/icons_buttons/blue_link_box.gif"> "http://tiff.net/filmsandschedules/tiff/2011/manonground" target=
"_blank" title="">Man on Ground promotional trailer

"Although the film is set in South Africa, it reflects the
day-to-day challenges migrants have to face in all parts of the
world," says Erick Ventura, IOM's a.i Chief of Mission in South
Africa. "We hope that viewers will empathize with the plight of
migrants in search of a better life abroad."

Man on Ground by Akin Omotoso has been selected to have its
world premiere at the prestigious Toronto International Film
Festival, which opened yesterday in the provincial capital of
Ontario and Canada's largest city.

"The Man on Ground production team is very proud to be
associated with IOM in our joint efforts to bridge the gap between
migrants and host communities," says Akin Omotoso. "This film aims
to foster a dialogue for people to understand that there is no
‘them' and ‘us' and that we are one and the same."

The film has been produced mostly through crowd funding from
individuals, companies and organizations, amongst them, 1Take
Media, Rosie Motene Productions, ChrisDon Productions, and
Hashayafric Productions in association with The National Film and
Video Foundation of South Africa.

IOM's support was made possible through funding from the Swedish
International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) and the
Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

To view promotional trailer visit: "paragraph-link-no-underline" href=
"http://tiff.net/filmsandschedules/tiff/2011/manonground" target=
"_blank" title=
"">http://tiff.net/filmsandschedules/tiff/2011/manonground

For more information please contact:

Nosipho Theyise 

IOM Pretoria

Tel +27 12 342 2789

Email: "mailto:ntheyise@iom.int">ntheyise@iom.int