Io Capitano is a cinematic journey of hope and heroism

In the middle of watching the Oscar-nominated film Io Capitano, I had to take a break and paused my laptop during a chaotic, disturbing scene of a dilapidated ship overflowing with desperate and dying refugees in the middle of the Mediterranean.

I googled, “How many refugees have died in the Mediterranean?” and the numbers were horrifying. 

A new report by the UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, titled “On this journey, no-one cares if you live or die”, stated: “In total, 1 180 persons are known to have died while crossing the Sahara Desert for the period January 2020 to May 2024, but the number is believed to be much higher. 

“During the same period, around 7 115 people on the move were reported to have died or gone missing in the Mediterranean.” 

This powerful feature film, directed by multi-award-winning Italian filmmaker Matteo Garrone, tells such a story — the adventurous journey of two 16-year-old Senegalese cousins, Seydou and Moussa (played by non-professional acting newcomers Seydou Sarr and Moustapha Fall), who leave Dakar to reach Europe, in search of fame like the people they watch on TikTok. 

A contemporary Odyssey through the pitfalls of the desert, the horrors of detention centres in Libya and the dangers of the sea.

But it is not pure fiction.

Io Capitano (Me, Captain) is based on accounts of actual experiences of people — like those in the UNHCR report — who have undertaken these arduous contemporary odysseys.

Amid the multiple dangers of the Sahara Desert, the Mediterranean Sea and hostile racketeers along the way, Io Capitano is ultimately a journey of hope and heroism.

This film goes beyond the numbers to put a human face on migration issues that remain a tragic challenge to the world, very much including African countries.

It raises issues of inequality and racism but also highlights the presence of humanity and compassion in unexpected places.

• The brilliant Io Capitano opens the 11th European Film Festival on 10 October. The festival is presenting films from 14 countries and screenings take place at Ster Kinekor’s The Zone in Rosebank, and in Cape Town at The Labia. 

• Eleven of the films will be available in the free programme of online streaming accessible across South Africa during the festival period from 10 to 20 October. 

• For more information. click here