UNTIL HE’S BACK
“UNTIL HE’S BACK,” an award-winning documentary film addressing the European refugee and immigration crisis will have its New York City premiere at DOC NYC, the largest documentary film festival in North America. The film took home the Jury Award for Best Short at the prestigious Big Sky Documentary Film Festival, first prize for Short Film at the Hamptons International Film Festival and El Paso Film Festival, and a special mention at Mountainfilm Festival in Telluride. The film was recently shortlisted for an International Documentary Association (IDA) Award.
“UNTIL HE’S BACK” explores a dangerous journey, crossing the Gibraltar Strait from Africa to Spain, and the difficulty of returning the bodies of those who drown at sea. After learning that his son, Yahya, has died at sea trying to get to Spain, Ahmed Tchiche must find a way to bring his remains back to Morocco so he and his family can have a proper goodbye. A mortician, an NGO worker and an established Moroccan immigrant living in Spain all struggle to help Ahmed get his son’s body home.
The film will screen on Friday, Nov. 15, 2024 at 2:45pm at East Village by Angelika followed by a Q&A with director Jacqueline Baylon.
As part of the film’s release in New York, there will be an exclusive screening and reception hosted by The Root’s drummer, record producer, disc jockey, filmmaker, music journalist, and actor Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson on November 25th.
Jacqueline is a Mexican filmmaker whose work focuses on civil rights injustices and immigration stories from different corners of the world. Her documentaries include stories such as the accusations against Turkey for cutting water supplies in northeast Syria, the experiences of protesting as an undocumented immigrant in the United States, and the harrowing reality of the oxygen supply crisis in Peru during the pandemic. She has worked for news organizations across the U.S., including The New York Times. Jacqueline was born in Chihuahua, Mexico, and was raised in El Paso, Texas.
“When I was six years old, my mother paid a smuggler in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, to get us across the Rio Grande on an inflatable tube. My mom’s decision changed my life forever. She knew that if we made it, we’d have a shot at the American dream. And we did.” said filmmaker Jacqueline Baylon. “I have been living between New York and Spain for the last three years. When I first arrived in Spain, the daily headlines about the drownings of migrants at sea caught my attention. The people dying were being smuggled from Morocco on inflatable dinghies not much bigger than canoes. Most of them were from North and West Africa. The temptation of a place like Spain was the same as the one the U.S. had for my mother — a job and a future.”
For tickets and more information, please visit:
https://www.docnyc.net/film/short-list-shorts-justice-and-democracy/until-hes-back/