Illegal Immigrants (The)

  • Clandestines
© Courtesy FIPA 2007
Genre : Political
Type : Documentary
Original title :
Principal country concerned : Column : Cinema/tv
Year of production : 2006
Format : Mid-length
Running time : 56 (in minutes)

Fleeing the extreme poverty of their native Anjouan, one of the poorest islands in the world, many women in a state of advanced pregnancy make their way to Mayotte. Here, they are virtually in France. Here, they can have their babies without cost and in good conditions. Their hope: a better life for their child, where schooling is free and a "French father" is possible. Illegal immigrants, they set sail on makeshift boats called "kwassas kwassas" for a long, dangerous journey to this French overseas community. Faced with this flood of candidates for exile, Mayotte and the French government have for several months now been stepping up their arsenal in the fight against this immigration. If some manage to reach Mayotte, others, already illegal aliens for a number of years, are now deciding to return to Anjouan because the situation has become poisonous. This has had repercussions on the local economy: ironically, Mayotte has always depended on the work done by these clandestine women - and men - to enrich the island activities and resources. Shuttling between Anjouan and Mayotte, this film is a portrait of several clandestine Mahoran women.

France - 2006 - 56 mn - DV Cam - Colour

Director : Pascale Poirier
Writer : Pascale Poirier
Camera : Pascale Poirier
Sound : Marine Raymond
Editing : Luis Andre

Production : Beta Production,
41, rue Moyenne, BP 282,
18006 Bourges Cedex, France
Tél : +33 (0)2 4824 4230
Fax : +33 (0)2 4824 8237
Email : info@betaprod.fr

Sales : France Télévisions Distribution,
Immeuble Le Barjac, 1, boulevard Victor,
75015 Paris, France
Tél : +33 (0)1 5622 9026
Fax : +33 (0)1 5622 9092
Email : l.canault@francetv.com

Format: DV Cam. Colour
Running time: 56 min
Year of production: 2006


2007 | FIPA (Festival International des Programmes Audiovisuels | BIARRITZ, France
* Aspects of French Production
www.fipa.tm.fr/en/programs/2007/clandestines-15368.htm

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