The Island of All Together

The project got major global recognition, from both old and new media. It aired on national TV, toured film and photo festivals worldwide, got articles on leading blogs and sites like Upworthy and New York Times, became Vimeo Staff Pick, premiered at the United Nations headquarters, got a shout out by Coldplay’s Chris Martin, was incorporated into an official school program by the Red Cross and oh,… we shouldn’t forget the nice museum that bought the entire project for their collection.

Let’s not talk about each other, but with each other.

In the first days of the refugee crisis, still many tourist visited the tiny Greek island for a comfortable holiday. While the mainstream media depicted the refugees by showing suffering, pain and total chaos - feeding Europe’s xenophobia - the project ‘The Island of All Together‘ sought out to demonstrate a basic human connection. We invited Syrian refugees and European tourists to meet each other. Sitting on a bench overlooking te sea they shared stories about war, home, work, cars, love and pets. 

The final project consists of a short documentary, photography (portraits) and a project website.

In the summer of 2015 a horrible refugee crisis emerged in Syria. On the Greek island of Lesvos thousands of refugees tried to enter mainland Europe every day. Something needed to be done. 

So we set ourselves a simple brief: Let’s help these people with what we do best: tell a human story.