By Hanna Rantala
VENICE (Reuters) – With migrant arrivals once again surging in Italy, director Matteo Garrone has brought a film to Venice showing the perilous journey from Africa to Europe through the eyes of two naive, but plucky Senegalese teenagers.
“In these years we have got used to the idea that they are only numbers and we forget that behind these numbers there are people, there are families, there are dreams, there are souls,” Garrone told Reuters following the premiere of “Me Captain”.
“(The film) was born out the idea of wanting to change the point of view,” said Garrone, whose previous movies include the crime dramas “Gomorrah” and “Dogman”.
“Me Captain” follows the two Senegalese youths as they leave their poor, but loving homes and head across the Saharan desert, before finally reaching Libya, the launch pad for many crossings to Europe, where the duo hope to find wealth and fame.
It is a trip fraught with danger as they get caught by thugs in Libya, who exact a terrible price before they manage to reach the coast. But the odyssey also reveals their courage and their tenacity to overcome the trauma and move ahead.
“It is truly an epic journey, a coming-of-age story that starts in one way and arrives in another, a boy becomes a man,” said Garrone.
After seeking his stars in both Italy and France, Garrone eventually found his leads in Senegal, choosing non-professional actors Seydou Sarr and Moustapha Fall to play the protagonists.
The movie was shot in sequence in Senegal and Morocco and the actors were only shown scripts at the start of each day’s filming. “So these characters experienced the journey live, without ever knowing what would happen the next day. And I believe this also helped them.”
Almost 115,300 boat migrants have reached Italy so far this year against 61,870 at the same point in 2022. The United Nations estimates that 2,066 people died at sea during the crossing, while an unknown number perished in the desert or at the hands of Libyan militia before even reaching the boats.
Despite the obvious dangers, one of the young actors said the journey might be unavoidable.
“Crossing the sea is not the best option, really, but you might have to take that risk in order to achieve your dreams and to have a better life, seeing as there is no chance to travel legally,” Fall told Reuters.
“Me Captain” is the second film tackling the theme of immigration at this year’s Venice Film Festival, following “Green Border”, which depicted the nightmares awaiting migrants at the crossing between Poland and Belarus.
The two films are competing with 21 others for the Golden Lion award, which will be presented when the festival ends on Saturday.
(Writing by Crispian Balmer; Editing by Sharon Singleton)
