Punch in the stomach: Raftopoulos' new film outlines Greece's migration crisis

‘Voices in Deep’ is the second feature film by Australian of Greek and Cypriot background writer and director Jason Raftopoulos

‘Voices in Deep’ is the second feature film by Australian of Greek and Cypriot background writer and director Jason Raftopoulos

Jason Raftopoulos' previous and first film ‘West of Sunshine’ premiered at the Venice Film Festival in 2017.

In 2018, Raftopoulos won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Film at the Festival des Antipodes in Saint Tropez and the Best Director award at the Barcelona International Film Festival.

Mr Raftopoulos’ new film ‘Voices in Deep’ is about the migration crisis in Greece which started in 2015 and is ongoing.

'What the film is trying to do is say that as a collective unconscious, violence, pain, and tragedy can't be escaped, they can't be turned off or numbed away.'

'Further, by not examining this connection in ourselves, we help create a society that becomes malignant, perverse, and exploitative.'

The film’s summary

In Athens, just after the devastating 2015 refugee crisis, Tarek and Zaeed fend for themselves on the street.

Their parents died during their ocean journey; in a bid for shelter and food, Tarek accepts exploitative sex work and Zaeed takes desperate, risky measures to change their circumstances.

Meanwhile, Bobby, a humanitarian worker dealing with her own painful past, is trying to offload bags of illegally harvested shellfish before she returns to Australia.

Stars of the film are Australian newcomer Hannah Sims as Bobby, Greek actor Angeliki Papoulia (famously known for Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos’ ‘Dogtooth’ and ‘The Lobster’) as Gloria, Christos Karavevas and Michael Hilane as Zaeed and Tarek and Kostas Nikouli (known for his role in Panos Koutras’ ‘Xenia’) as Masi.

Jason Raftopoulos spoke to SBS Greek and explain why and how he decided to do a movie about this migration crisis.

He defines who are these ‘Voices in Deep’ and why it is important to have films like the ‘Voices in Deep’ that underline the refugee problems.