In 2015 our team produced a film titled 50 Feet from Syria focused on the civilian impact of the Syrian conflict. This was the first of a triad of films focused on one of the great humanitarian crises of our time – the plight of refugees in a global and interconnected world.

 

In a political environment increasingly hostile to immigrants and refugees, documenting and showcasing the real-life plight of those fleeing war and oppression is more vital and important than ever. 

 

LIFEBOAT addresses this idea through showcasing the plight of refugees desperate enough to risk their lives in flimsy rubber boats leaving Libya in the middle of the night and pushing off into the unknown. Despite a high probability of drowning, desperate men and women choose the risk of setting off across an ocean in the middle of the night over the known dangers facing them if they remain in their countries of origin.

 

Our point-of-view in the film is unique and intimate and achieved through embedding a two-person filmmaking team on a small, 30-meter search and rescue vessel operating off the coast of Libya.