In 2018, thousands of migrants from Central America ventured on a colossal journey from Honduras to the U.S.-Mexico border, fleeing violence and poverty in search of a better life for their families. Los Rios, a documentary film by Edmonton natives Dale Bailey and Ryan Fyfe-Brown, follows a family of three young girls and their mother on the nearly 4,500-kilometre trek as they seek political asylum in the U.S. during Donald Trump’s first midterm elections. “It really chronicles their specific experience along this journey within this mass group of people,” explained Bailey. “Being up in Canada, we just don’t really know the realities of what’s going down there.” Bailey and Fyfe-Brown met the caravan in southern Mexico and filmed for two months, walking, hitchhiking and sleeping alongside migrant families. While being dropped in the middle of Mexico among thousands of people seeking asylum was unnerving at first, Bailey said he was soon welcomed with open arms. “At that time, I was very nervous and wondered what walking with a fancy-looking camera among these people would invite,” recalled Bailey. “But everyone was just amazing. Not only were they really kind and open and welcoming, they realized that any cameras that were on them equaled safety.” During the months-long caravan, news outlets from across the world reported on it. Some avoiding bias with others altering the narrative. “The U.S. media does a really good job of making it not seem like there is a real person there … We wanted to attach a face to the name.” Despite facing so much adversity, Bailey says the children were the most resilient. “The kids are following not – 100 per cent of the adults even – understanding the full weight of the journey that was ahead of them and what to expect in the U.S.,” he said. “Even though they’re doing this crazy thing, and they’re walking, they’re sick, they’re tired, their feet hurt – they get to the park, and they just start playing. “To see them just being kids in the craziest setting possible was really uplifting.” Although Los Rios is centred around the 2018 migrant caravan, Bailey hopes the film will bring attention to caravans that are occurring now in all corners of the world. “It’s not just history. It’s so current,” said Bailey. “There are people being displaced for so many reasons and are seeking some sort of safety and asylum ... it’s not just in our quadrant of the world. It’s everywhere.” Los Rios initially debuted in Toronto at the Canadian Film Festival (CFF) earlier this year, where it won a jury award for Impact, but for Bailey and Fyfe-Brown, its Edmonton premiere is the most meaningful. “(The CFF) really gave us a chance and they really helped us out … In Edmonton, I think a lot of people who know us have known that this has been in the works for a very long time. This is the big one for me, where I really feel like it’s really the celebration,” said Bailey. The film will be screening at Metro Cinema at 7 p.m. on Sunday with admissions by donation and all proceeds going to the family featured in the film. Additional screenings will be held at theatres in Calgary, Saskatoon and Vancouver, followed by a limited online release.
