Margina (2015)

"Margina" reflects upon life in the Roma community, giving very intimate insights into the life of a Roma family in Macedonia, who exists "at the edge" of European society. Without overt pathos, the film shows everyday family-life, marked by social marginalization and economic hardship, but also the usual domestic problems. The camera's presence is close, yet sensitive, finding a language through observation, which gives the family's story its own platform. As many Roma of the region, they are forced to make a living by cutting firewood for their non-Roma neighborhood. They thereby interact closely with the Macedonian ethnic majority and become object of more or less crude forms of racism. Many scenes are not easy to endure due to the structural, and often unconscious, verbal violence, which occurs. In search for a better life, the family decides to try to make their way to Germany, in order to seek asylum and spend the winter there. The film achieves a poignant connection between an individual story and the global situation of larger flows of refugees.