For years, the stories of West African migrants and refugees have been told through the lenses of foreign journalists. Revenir changes that.
Part road-trip, part memoir, part journalistic investigation, Revenir follows Kumut Imesh – a refugee from the Ivory Coast now living in France – as he returns to the African continent and retraces the same journey he was forced to make when fleeing civil war in his country. This time, he carries a camera.
Kumut was forced to flee the Ivory Coast in 2004. His journey took him across the African continent before he arrived in Morocco, where he spent seven years working closely with NGOs and associations supporting fellow migrants. In 2013 he met Australian documentary filmmaker David Fedele in Morocco, working as translator on Fedele’s film The Land Between. It was during that experience that Kumut developed a deep interest in documentary filmmaking and where the idea of retracing his own journey across Africa with a camera first took shape.
Traveling alone, Kumut documents his journey as both protagonist and filmmaker, revealing the human struggle for freedom and dignity on one of the most dangerous migratory routes in the world. A controversial film experiment, a courageous journey, and a unique collaboration between filmmaker and refugee. It’s one that is not without consequences.
David Fedele, who produced, directed and edited the film, is an award-winning documentary filmmaker whose work explores cultural, humanitarian and social justice issues across the world. His previous film The Land Between (2014) won Best Feature-length Documentary at the FIFE International Environmental Film Festival in Paris and was screened at the European Parliament in Brussels, winning numerous awards worldwide. In 2014 Fedele was selected for Berlinale Talents as part of the Berlin International Film Festival.
Revenir won the Jury Prize at the Document Human Rights Film Festival 2018 in Glasgow, Scotland. It is Kumut Imesh’s first film.
