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The Invisible City: Kakuma

The Invisible City: Kakuma

Representation Score

6.9/10

Good

2016

PG

Director

Lieven Corthouts

Runtime

76 minutes

Average Rating

No ratings yet

New Showbiz Analysis

The film shifts the focus away from Western-centric perspectives, emphasizing the ability to act of displaced populations. By following characters over four years, it avoids voyeuristic clichés of suffering and instead highlights intellectual and social achievements. While the documentary excels in racial and cultural representation, it remains neutral regarding LGBTQ+ identities. The work disrupts traditional documentary frameworks, replacing 'poverty porn' with a nuanced look at how underrepresented youth navigate systemic instability.

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Category Breakdown

Does The Invisible City: Kakuma have LGBTQ+ representation?

Fair

The film does not include any explicit LGBTQ+ storylines or characters who identify outside the cisgender norm. It focuses on the survival and academic goals of refugee youth.

How does The Invisible City: Kakuma portray gender?

Good

Female characters like Nyakong and Khadijo play key roles in driving the story through their intelligence and resilience. They compete for scholarships and build their own futures.

How racially and ethnically diverse is The Invisible City: Kakuma?

Excellent

The documentary centers on a mostly non-white cast living in the Turkana desert. It portrays characters of color as active architects of their lives.

How does The Invisible City: Kakuma represent religion and culture?

Excellent

The film critiques Western-centric ideas of stability and home. It presents the refugee camp as a temporary holding area rather than a long-term solution for the displaced.

Does The Invisible City: Kakuma include disability representation?

Minimal

There is no mention of characters dealing with physical or neurodivergent disabilities in the available information.

Present on Screen

  • Highlights characters of color as active architects of their own futures.
  • Challenges stereotypes by centering women as primary drivers of socio-economic mobility.
  • Critiques global power dynamics and the systemic limitations of refugee status.

Limited or Absent

  • Could benefit from including more explicit representation or narrative arcs for LGBTQ+ identities.
  • Does not provide any visible information regarding characters with physical or neurodivergent disabilities.

Official Synopsis

How to build a home in a place called nowhere? Kakuma refugee camp, built in the middle of the Turkana desert (Kenya), is the fastest growing city in the region. Many of its new arrivals are children sent out of conflict zones by their parents. Against all odds, these children grab all opportunities in the camp to rebuild their life. While waiting for her mother to return from South Sudan, Nyakong (8) starts to go to school. Slowly she creates a new home in the camp. At the age of 17, teenagers like Claude and Khadijo consequently compete for international scholarships, get a job, even build their own house. Filmmaker Lieven Corthouts decided to stay in one of the toughest places on earth and make this camp his home. While filming his friends for more than 4 years, he unveils the accomplishments of these strong, smart children and the true dynamics of a refugee camp. Can Kakuma really offer a future? Or is it just a waiting room, where the only option is to plan your journey to Europe?

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