Synopse
The Mediterranean connects and separates three continents and three world religions. For centuries it has been one of the world's major linchpins; crossed, used, enjoyed, feared and loved. Stories from the Sea portrays people on three ships that see this waters as a workplace, a place of longing and an escape-route. The characters are all connected by the all-encompassing water, the constant movement of the waves and the distant horizon.
We meet Rhiannon, a young English woman who works as the only female on a bulk carrier. Her Filipino companions teach her their cooking and language. However she avoids the nightly karaoke-singing – she prefers to watch TV series in bed, write her diary or talk to her boyfriend back home.
Meanwhile, eight emerging opera singers are at a singing competition aboard the luxurious cruiser ship MS Europa. They spend two weeks competing in front of tourists and a jury, while also finding time to enjoy their time at sea. We follow the crew that serves the singers and the tourists into their work area for a look behind the shiny facade. The engine driving the tourists’ holiday happiness is characterized by long days of hard work, followed by the nightly ritual of unwinding in the crew bar.
Ragino accompanies the rescue boat Sea-Watch in search for refugee boats in distress. He and the rest of the crew, consisting of volunteers from all over Europe, are the refugees' first point of contact with their long-awaited goal: Europe. The Sea Watch provides them with food, water and medical support until a larger ship transports them to a European harbor, where an uncertain fate awaits them.
Just as the Mediterranean Sea is a place where invisible borders meet, so are these ships. Stories from the Sea looks closely at how religions, languages and identities come together on board of these vessels. Does the Mediterranean Sea separate the people who cross it, or connect them? Can these waters become a home or does it remain a place of transit?
We meet Rhiannon, a young English woman who works as the only female on a bulk carrier. Her Filipino companions teach her their cooking and language. However she avoids the nightly karaoke-singing – she prefers to watch TV series in bed, write her diary or talk to her boyfriend back home.
Meanwhile, eight emerging opera singers are at a singing competition aboard the luxurious cruiser ship MS Europa. They spend two weeks competing in front of tourists and a jury, while also finding time to enjoy their time at sea. We follow the crew that serves the singers and the tourists into their work area for a look behind the shiny facade. The engine driving the tourists’ holiday happiness is characterized by long days of hard work, followed by the nightly ritual of unwinding in the crew bar.
Ragino accompanies the rescue boat Sea-Watch in search for refugee boats in distress. He and the rest of the crew, consisting of volunteers from all over Europe, are the refugees' first point of contact with their long-awaited goal: Europe. The Sea Watch provides them with food, water and medical support until a larger ship transports them to a European harbor, where an uncertain fate awaits them.
Just as the Mediterranean Sea is a place where invisible borders meet, so are these ships. Stories from the Sea looks closely at how religions, languages and identities come together on board of these vessels. Does the Mediterranean Sea separate the people who cross it, or connect them? Can these waters become a home or does it remain a place of transit?
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