Solidarity Crime,
the borders of democracy
Solidarity Crime, the borders of democracy denounce the systematic policies of human rights violations against migrants and all those who have stood in solidarity with them.
The documentary presents their stories through interviews with migrants (at the borders of Europe, in 14 cities and 5 countries), and with those who have been sanctioned and continue to face prosecution for facilitating - without any material benefit - the entry, transit, or stay of irregular migrants.
In this documentary, migrants from the Parco Roya in Ventimiglia and the tent city of San Ferdinando - among others - tell their stories. Among the protagonists are renowned activists as Cédric Herrou, who was on trial by the French authorities, as well as experts in the field from academia and the International Migration Law Unit of the IOM (UN) in Geneva, who report on the dangerousness of the crime of solidarity from a social, legal and political point of view.
Migrants have been criminalized for years; for more than a decade now, even people who show solidarity and help them have been considered "solidarity criminals". But aren't these people, among the more than 500 million European citizens, the ones who best represent the founding values of the Union: solidarity, respect for human dignity, defense of human rights?
In this documentary, we will learn about the history of the different actors of solidarity and address the key questions behind this reality: why is the only limited mobility in globalization human mobility? Why is the defense of universal human rights pursued? What alternatives can we imagine in the face of the nationalist drift? We are on a delicate path, and we are close to crossing a very dangerous line, one that puts in tension the basic principles of our democracy.
International Festivals, Mentions and Prizes
XVI Festival internazionale del film corto Tulipani di Seta Nera. Rome (Italy), June 2021.
Critics' Choice Award for the best documentary.
ANAC Audience Award for best documentary.
Afrika FilmFestival. Leuven (Belgium), October 2021.
Festival del Cinema dei Diritti Umani di Napoli. Naples (Italy), November 2021
“Persecuted” Award.
XVII Barcelona Human Rights Film Festival. Barcelona (Spain), December 2021.
III International Human Rights Film Festival Miradas Diversas. Caracas (Venezuela), December 2021.
VI International Film Festival of Active Nonviolence - FICNOVA. Madrid (Spain), October 2022.
Medium-length film VI FICNOVA 2022 Award.
Human Rights Film Festival Berlin. Berlin (Germany), October 2022.
Special Jury Mention
Globale Mittelhessen. Lollar and Giessen (Germany), November 2023.
Other screenings
Casa Grande El Pumarejo. Seville (Spain), April 2021.
Centre Cívic Pati Llimona. Barcelona (Spain), March 2022.
Asociación Atlas Gran Canaria. Canary Islands (Spain), March 2022.
University of Buenos Aires. Argentina, 2022.
University of Seville. Spain, 2022.
Università degli Studi di Genova. Italy, 2022.
Geneva Academy. Switzerland, 2022.
Scuola Sant'Anna di Pisa. Italy, 2022.
University of South Florida, Italy, 2022.
University of Deusto, Spain, 2022.
Institut für Ethnologie - Universität zu Köln, Germany, 2023.
University of York, United Kingdom, forthcoming - 2023.
University of Potsdam, Germany, forthcoming - 2023.
University of Milan, Italy, forthcoming - 2023.
Data Sheet
Direction/ Production: Nicolás Braguinsky Cascini and Juan Pablo Aris Escarcena.
Production company: Mandorla Films.
Script: Nicolás Braguinsky Cascini and Juan Pablo Aris Escarcena.
Year (of production): 2021.
Country (of production): Switzerland, Spain, Argentina, Italy, France, and Morocco.
Country (of filming): Spain: Seville, Granada, Ceuta, Melilla; Morocco: Nador; Switzerland: Geneva; France: Menton, Breil-sur-Roya; Italy: Ventimiglia, San Ferdinando, Rosarno, Raice, Palermo, Catania.
Running time: 55 minutes.
Genre: documentary.
Resolution: 1920x1080 (24 fps).
Language: English, French, Italian, Spanish.
Subtitles: English, French, Italian, Spanish.
Interviews: José Antonio "Onio" Reina, Kristina Touzenis, Cédric Herrou, Bastien Stauffer-Cart, Abdul Jalil Isah, Vander & Farmarco, Ousmane Biaback Anoung, José Palazón, Esteban Velázquez, Omar Naji, Alikhali Leigh, Seikou Fofana, Faousto Melluso, Giovanni Maiolo, Luca Quirolo Palmas, Nino Trillo, Julia Melichar, Delia Bounuomo, Manuela Vanzonneveld, Ana Elena Altuna, Roberta Ferruti, Angela & Rosina, Insa Moussa Ba Sané, "Didi", Ruby Katz