In a desperate attempt to reach Europe and crouched before an airstrip in Cameroon, a six-year-old boy and his older sister wait to sneak into the holds of an airplane. Not too far away, an environmental activist contemplates the terrible image of an elephant, dead and fangless. Not only do you have to fight against poaching, but you will also have to meet the problems of your newly arrived daughter from Spain. Thousands of kilometers to the north, in Melilla, a group of civil guards prepare to face the furious crowd of sub-Saharan people who have begun the assault on the fence. Three stories linked by a central theme, in which none of its protagonists know that their destinies are doomed to cross and that their lives will no longer be the same.
Direction
Calvo juggles three timelines without dropping a single heartbreak.
Acting
Moustapha Oumarou, six years old, carries unbearable weight.
Cinematography
The fence assault filmed like war horror you can't look away from.
Director
Salvador Calvo
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The Melilla fence assault was filmed with actual migrants who had crossed it—director Calvo cast non-professionals for documentary-level authenticity.
Released months before renewed Western focus on Mediterranean migration crises; Spain submitted it for the International Feature Oscar but it wasn't nominated—some critics blamed its unsparing bleakness.
ES
