Documentary Film Migration

Completion of a documentary film aiming to save lives

250 people on a fishing boat in Pointe-Sarène on the Senegalese coast.

250 faces. 250 dreams. 250 lives.

Eleven days later, 100 survivors are found in Mauritania. The remaining 150 passengers are missing, including Pape Tamsir Sogue.

«Dem-Dem - Le grand Exodus» is a visual social science project. It traces the journey of this young man. Through interviews with survivors of the shipwreck, family members, and people who made it to Europe, director Siby Sow questions the reasons for migration from his homeland, the dangers of the journey, and the possible prospects on both sides of the ocean.

The film is both a memorial to the thousands of Africans who lost their lives during the crossing and a powerful call to the continent’s youth to build a future of safety, prosperity, and dignity. At the same time, Dem-Dem is an invitation to all of us to think about and shape the possibilities of our coexistence on this planet as a human community.

The producers:

• Siby Sow (producer, director)

• Charlotte Meisner (co-producer)

• Cheikh Tidiane Ndiaye (co-producer, MMN PICTURES Dakar)

Since 2025, the visiting professorship for French literature and culture at ETH Zurich has been facilitating contact with the academic community and supporting the production in terms of research and logistics. As part of the collaboration, two expert interviews were conducted and integrated into the film. The following film screenings, discussions, and events are planned at ETH Zurich:

• Summer reading of the WIDE Book Club «From Pages to Changes»: «Afrotopia» by Senegalese author Felwine Sarr

• «Reimagining Africa» discussion with Felwine Sarr on October 22, 2025 (organized by NADEL)

• «Migration & Hospitalité» film screening and roundtable with Siby Sow, Felwine Sarr, and Kim Thúy on October 23, 2025 (organized by the Visiting Professorship for French Literature and Culture)

• In collaboration with ASAZ, the African Student Association in Zurich, film screenings will be used as a starting point for formulating questions that will be incorporated into current research projects in various disciplines.

As a human community, we can reinvent the world together. Be part of it.

In view of the immense loss of human life on the route to Europe, there is an urgent need for action and a shared responsibility. The film is intended for educational and training purposes and aims to:

• Raise awareness on both sides of the ocean about the dangers of irregular migration

• Encourage reflection on our shared life on this planet

• Show new perspectives as alternatives to the risks of crossing the sea by boat.

We need support for the final push. 90 percent of the film has already been produced. With your contribution, we can make it happen.

Since Swiss film funding is only available to established production companies, Siby Sow, who was born in Senegal and now lives in Switzerland, has already invested around CHF 50,000 of his own money in the film’s production since 2018. The following steps have already been completed:

• Research and interviews with Pape Tamsir’s family in Mbour (Senegal)

• Interviews with African migrants in Rome, Rimini (Italy), Geneva, and Montreux (Switzerland)

• Rough cut in collaboration with Reflex Dakar

The contribution from the Wemakeit community will enable the final steps of production on the way to the finished documentary film:

• Completion of research: interviews with Pape Tamsir’s teacher, his brother, and a close friend (20%)

• Historical context provided by drone footage of Île de Gorée, the former departure point for the transport of enslaved people (10%)

• Final editing in collaboration with Reflex Dakar (30%)

• Inclusion of music from Senegal and Switzerland (10%)

• Post-production (20%)

• Subtitles (10%)

The result will be shown at a film screening event for the Wemakeit community and celebrated together. With your contribution, we can make it happen. Be part of it and support this important project!