The Valley

High in the French Alps, on the border between Italy and France, migrants fleeing war, poverty and political persecution risk their lives crossing dangerous mountain routes. Witnessing the increasing influx of refugees, local communities in the Roya and Durance Valleys start providing them with shelter, food and legal counselling. Since transporting and hosting undocumented migrants is a criminal offence, these good Samaritans find themselves on the wrong side of the law, sometimes even facing jail time for their acts of civil disobedience. At a time when migration issues in Europe are politicized and thrust into the media spotlight more than ever before, Nuno Escudeiro documents the battle between the population and the authorities, who themselves blatantly violate human rights when refusing to process asylum seekers and minors' requests. This gripping and necessary chronicle rightfully reclaims the ethical duty of solidarity, criminalized by a perverted system.