Rescue

Documentary

Programme: TIFF Docs
Year: 2026
Runtime: 90 min
Country: Denmark, Italy, Germany, Sweden, Iceland
Language: Arabic / English / Italian / German
Premiere: World Premiere

On a dead-calm morning in the Mediterranean, the migrant rescue ship of Doctors Without Borders spots a deflating rubber boat. Dozens of people are struggling in the water. Among the refugees is Roro, a Yemeni mother traveling with her husband, Hani, their two-month-old baby, and two young sons. As the rescue begins, a Libyan militia intervenes and abducts Roro and the children, dragging them back to Libya. Meanwhile, Hani is rescued and arrives in Europe alone. A family is violently torn apart across the Mediterranean. While Hani fights from Europe to reunite the family, Roro struggles to survive captivity in Libya and to protect her children. Trapped by a violent system deeply entangled with EU border politics, she relentlessly attempts to cross the sea again. RESCUE is a gripping story of survival and injustice, and a powerful portrait of a young mother whose strength drives the film.

From the TIFF programme

Director Sine Plambech (Heartbound, TIFF ’18) documents the kidnapping of a mother and her long quest to be reunited with her husband, illuminating a mass crisis experienced by migrants in the Mediterranean.

Rescue opens with a harrowing abduction in the waters of the Mediterranean close to the Libyan coast. Director Sine Plambech and her film crew are accompanying the Geo Barents, a rescue ship operated by Doctors Without Borders that’s trying to save a rubber boat packed with migrants in distress. Suddenly, a third vessel approaches, piloted by Libyan militia members. During a frantic scramble in the open water, some migrants are snatched by the militias, while others reach the Geo Barents. One of the rescued migrants, Hani, tells the film crew he has just been separated from his family. His wife Roro, his young son, and their two-month old daughter have been kidnapped by the militia.

That’s the start of an epic journey that Plambech continues to film over several months. The militias hold captives for ransom, while the European Union quietly funnels billions of euros to North African countries to halt migration. Normally, these tragedies take place beyond the reach of cameras. But in this case, Roro has managed to hide a cell phone in her baby’s diaper and is able to share what’s happening to her with Hani, who never gives up believing they can be reunited.

The story is so dramatic that you frequently need to remind yourself that it’s a documentary. That’s a credit to Plambech, who has honed her skills as an anthropologist and filmmaker over many years, and works here with an elite team. We are in their debt for the revelations that take place.

THOM POWERS