SYNopsis

After a Dantean journey, women from Nigeria arrive alone and ever younger in Italy, looking for a better life. Such horrors as human trafficking and sexual slavery are waiting for them, as we discover in this ensemble film featuring harrowing stories told in a sensible way that spares us from the unbearable. These tales provoke a broader reflection on migration and otherness.​

TECHNICAL SHEET

Documentary. Quebec (Canada). 85 minutes, 2024.
Original Italian, English and French version with French, English and Italians subtitles.
Script and direction: Helen Doyle
Cinematography: Philippe Lavalette, Nathalie Moliavko-Visotzky
Editing: Annie Jean / Complementary editing: Denis Pilon
Sound recording, drone and underwater shots: Olivier Léger
Sound design and editing: Catherine Van Der Donckt
Mix: Bruno Bélanger
Special collaboration, photography: Elena Perlino (Pipeline)
Special collaboration, music and songs: Katia Makdissi-Warren, Daniela Fiorentino, Pier Mario Giovannone, Lise Massal, Martha Wainwright, Kate McGarrigle
Animation: Farzin Farzaneh, Linda Marie Bluteau (Bluto)
Production consultant: Nathalie Barton
Production: Germain Bonneau et Helen Doyle - Tatouages de la mémoire
Distribution: SPIRA
AFTER THE ODYSSEY was produced with the financial participation of the SODEC, Telefilm Canada, the Film and Television Tax Credit (Gestion SODEC), the Conseil des arts de Longueuil, the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec, the Canada Council for the Arts, the Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit, in collaboration with PRIM and the ACIC - Independent Filmmaker Assistance Program of the NFB.
𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐧 𝐃𝐨𝐲𝐥𝐞 received the 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐱 𝐀𝐥𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐭 -𝐓𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓.
This is the highest distinction awarded to an individual for their outstanding contribution to the field of cinema in Quebec!

Picks:
"Receiving the Albert Tessier Award is an opportunity for Helen Doyle to « thank those who have accompanied [her] since [her] early days of becoming a "girl of the screen". I am thinking in particular of all those people behind and in front of the camera who have placed their trust in me and who continue to support me in my efforts to create “Tatouages de la mémoire”, » she explains."

"When asked which professional achievement she is most proud of, Helen Doyle immediately responds with her most recent film, After the Odyssey, before qualifying her answer:« 'But I feel like the Petit Poucet: each of my achievements is like a little pebble that I leave behind me [and] that allows me both to mark my path and to look back so that I can better project myself into the future.»"

To read the entire tribute (in French):
prixduquebec.gouv.qc.ca/recipiendaires/helen-doyle

​photo© Mélissa Vincelli