Actor Nico Panagio joins the fight against child trafficking
Actor and television presenter, Nico Panagio, is fighting the good fight with his work in assisting in missing persons' cases.
When he’s not busy entertaining South Africans through their television screens, actor and presenter Nico Panagio is also changing the world for the better.
On Thursday, Breakfast with Martin Bester spoke to Panagio about his work in the Missing Children South Africa non-profit organisation.
Missing Children South Africa is a first-tier emergency response service that assists the South African Police Service in all missing persons cases in the country. As a Non-Profit Organisation, they rely on donations to keep operating.
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It’s Panagio’s work with Missing Children SA that led him to his interest in the new film, 'Sound of Freedom'.
While South African audiences flocked to cinemas following the release of 'Sound of Freedom', an independent film that intricately weaves the remarkable true story of a former government agent's evolution into a vigilant champion who embarks on a dangerous mission to rescue hundreds of children from human trafficking, an international "Pay it Forward" campaign is making it possible for more people to see the film in cinemas.
An extension of the project that was run in America, the first 50,000 tickets are now available for South Africa, providing people who can’t afford cinema tickets the opportunity to see it at one of the 43 cinemas releasing the film to do so. There is also the option to donate to the campaign.
The film’s South African distributor, Gravel Road Distribution Group, have launched a local campaign, #PayItForwardAngels, and have set a target to raise 10,000 tickets from everyday South Africans and corporates, for those who cannot afford to see the film in cinemas, through this campaign.
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“Angel Studios set up a pay it forward program where you can pay for someone else’s ticket who might not otherwise see it. If the ticket price is preventing you from attending, claim your free ticket."
South African audiences wishing to pledge or participate in the #PayItForwardAngels campaign can go to this website for more information on how to donate, https://www.gravelroadafrica.com/payitforward, or visit participating Ster-Kinekor, Nu Metro, and Cine Centre cinemas and scan the QR codes displayed in the cinema foyers (just look out for #PayItForwardAngels signage).
Then, those South Africans who cannot afford the price of a ticket can also go to this site to apply for a free ticket, https://www.gravelroadafrica.com/payitforward. The site generates a unique code per person which can be used to book a ticket online at Ster-Kinekor cinemas, or on site at Nu Metro and Cine Centre cinemas.
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