The Moan of the Sea

Listen to the sea. Listen to it carefully. Look at it. Gaze into it properly. Amid the noise of the waves, the moan of thousands of people can be heard. The moan is so weak that at times it is not heard at all – it drowns in the roars of the marine element.

On board the Ocean Viking, a rescue vessel of the humanitarian organization SOS Méditerranée, we catch the words that the wind brings every day, hear this call to save those who risk their lives. We observe, wait, hope for a meeting. Because to hear the moan means to have the opportunity to extend a helping hand. To save someone's life. To remain human. Even if we are later accused of saving those who are not expected on the shore from unavoidable death.

The artist Hippolyte boards the ship to document the operation to rescue migrants in the Mediterranean Sea, who, in turn, hope that their last hope will not turn into an invisible wall.