Mati Diop

Three young Senegalese men sit around a bonfire in Dakar at night, one describing his experience of trying to cross the ocean to Spain. As they reflect on his dangerous journey, light plays across their faces, and everything hangs in suspension. Past lives and future dreams pale against the immensity of the Atlantic Ocean. Melancholic and mysterious, the award-winning nonfiction short urgently and elegantly addresses the perils of illegal migration—and serves as a terrific teaser for Diop’s debut feature Atlantics, screening March 20 as part of the series Speculative Africa. (15 mins., video)

Image: Atlantics, courtesy of Canadian Filmmakers Distribution Centre, Toronto