Harraga - those who burn their lives

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Duration: 01:27:15
Languaje: Arabic, English, Spanish
Category: Documentary
Project Type: Documentary, Feature, Student
Synopsis: Imad, Nourdine, Walid and Hamza live in a stone cave under a lighthouse in Melilla. Every night, the Moroccan teenagers break into the nearby port. There, they try to climb unnoticed onto ships bound for the Spanish mainland. They and dozens of other children have formed their own community under the protection of the rocks. Director Benjamin Rost documents the impressive lives of the young people over a period of five years. The film's title describes the widespread practice of illegal North African immigrants burning their papers, and thus their identities, when apprehended by police. A poignant documentary that offers a glimpse into an unknown world.

Screenings / Awards:
19. Zurich Film Festival Zurich October 3, 2023 World Premiere Focus Competition Switzerland 57. Hof International Film Festival Hof October 25, 2023 German Premiere Main Competition Germany 14. Human Rights Days Luzern Luzern December 9, 2023 Switzerland Sheffield Doc/ Fest Pitch Prize 2020 German Documentary Film Awards Stuttgart June 21, 2024 German Documentary Film Award Germany 7. DOCUMED Tunisia 2024 Tunis May 13, 2024 Tunisia Premiere Tunisia 20. Achtung Berlin Film Festival Berlin April 10, 2024 Berlin Premiere Germany 05. Casablanca Arab Film Festival Casablanca September 12, 2024 Morocco Premier Morocco 15. FINIFA Agadir Agadir September 14, 2024 Agadir Premier Morocco 13. Festival International De Cinéma Et De Mémoire Commune Nador November 15, 2024 Nador Premier Morocco 13. Contra el Silencio Todas las Voces Mexico September 23, 2024 Mexico Premier Mexico 29. FICAR Rabat Author Film Festival Rabat November 11, 2024 International Competition Morocco 13. Tangier Film Festival Tangier November 20, 2024 Main Competition Morocco 03. Human Rights Are Universal Arts Festival Kampala October 16, 2024 Uganda Premier Main Competition Uganda 36. Girona Film Festival Girona November 9, 2024 Spain Premier Documentary Competition Spain 33. International Festival of Ethnological Film Belgrade Belgrade December 4, 2024 Serbia Premiere Main Competition Serbia 08. Under our Skin Human Rights Film Festival Nairobi November 7, 2024 Kenya Premiere Main Competition Kenya

Submitter Biography:
Benjamin Rost works as director and activist in Europe and Africa. He studied Directing at Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg and Philosophy in Munich. Between 2017 and 2019 he lived in Rwanda and South Africa to support the launch of the Youth TV Channel ‘Iwacu’ for the German Development Organisation (GIZ) and to shoot his graduation film ‘A Portrait on the Search for Happiness’ supported by ARD / SWR and MfG, which is available on Amazon Prime. With his Debut Project ‘Harraga - Those who burn their lives’ he participated at Documentary Campus Masterschool. Since then Benjamin is also a member of ACAN (Arab Cultures and Arts Network) and actively working in Morocco, where he got to know Hicham, who became a good friend and collaborator in working on Harraga on both sides of the border. His films were screened at various international festivals like Dok Leipzig, Dok.Fest München, Camerimage a.m. Hicham Bourais is born in Fez, Morrocco. He came to Spain in 2000 to study, but after a year and a half, his father died and he could no longer study because his family could not send him money. He stopped studying. As a consequence he lost his student residence card and lived for more than 4 years without papers in the country. With the help of a Spanish friend he moved to Madrid and got a work contract. By that Hicham had the chance to enrol in Pedro Almodóvar's film school in Madrid. His dream has always been to make films, cinema is the axis on which his life revolves, but in Morocco he had no option to study cinema. While Hicham was studying at Escuela de Cine Madrid, he had his first paid job as an assistant editor, translator and subtitler for a short film. Hichams great mentor became Antonio Gómez Escalonilla, who above all is also a great friend. Till now Hicham works in Film Projects as editor, translator and director and lives in Zaragoza, Spain.