For many people, fleeing across the Mediterranean to Europe is often their last hope of escaping war, persecution, and hunger. As more and more women and children are forced to take one of the most dangerous escape routes in the world, a midwife is now part of the crew on a sea rescue ship. WHERE THE WAVES TOOK HER accompanies Berlin midwife Anne-Katrin on her first rescue mission. Her journey is told in parallel with the women’s stories of escape. While we get to know the strong female care team on board along with Anne-Katrin and prepare for an emergency with them, the women who have fled tell their stories of the suffering that their escape to Europe has brought them on a carefully designed visual level using long exposures and in a studio filled with water. The long exposures create blurred, poetic images that not only serve to anonymize and protect, but also convey the emotional intensity of the situation in a new way. On the ship, the worlds of the women and the crew collide for a brief moment before the women arrive in Italy and begin yet another journey into the unknown.
Festivals & Awards
• Hofer Filmtage | 2025 | Nomination for Granit – Hofer Documentary Film Award &
Honourable Mention
• SI STAR Nachwuchspreis | 2026 | Award ceremony during the Berlinale 2026
• Deutscher Kamerapreis | 2026 | Nomination for Sophia Fenn
Project Details
Documentary | 2025 | Germany
Director: Jana Stallein Production: Wüste Film West GmbH Producers: Charlotte Peters, Levin Hübner Executive Producers: Lucie Emons, Stefan Schubert, Björn Vosgerau Commissioning Editors (rbb): Rolf Bergmann Production Manager: Lena Gill Cinematography: Sophia Fenn Sound: Henning Großmann Production Design Studio: Antonia Nestler Film Editing: Amélie Richter Music and Sounddesign Henric Schleiner Vocals: Leen Al-Hassan Color Grading: Sarah Salzmann Supported by: Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg
Realised as part of the Leuchtstoff-Initiative With the kind support of: Sony Europe B.V.; SOS Humanity e.V.; Studio Babelsberg AG; TI:ME:CO:DE; Zeigermann_Audio GmbH Distributor: UCM.ONE Release Date: Theatrical Release September 3, 2026