Produced in partnership with Lavinia.

This documentary series should not have to exist.
With unprecedented access to the missions, daily operations, and strategic decisions of Open Arms, Against the Current portrays a turning point in the NGO’s trajectory at a crucial moment.

Across four episodes, and through intimate stories and previously unseen material, the documentary series delves into the African migration route, which leads thousands of young people to risk everything in pursuit of the European dream. It reveals the harshness of the journey and the contradictions of a Europe that is closing in on itself.

But Open Arms does not operate only at sea. Its daily work also includes actions in less visible contexts: offering alternatives to migration, responding to humanitarian emergencies such as the pandemic or the war in Gaza, and seeking to influence European institutions.

All episodes can be found here.