Most of the time immigrants are thought of in a negative way, people forget about the colour and light in their lives. Stories told about immigrants and asylum seekers tend to forget about the human side of these people, forgetting that they are people first and foremost. It is important not to forget about the love, intimacy and friendship they have in their lives. For filmmaker Joy Gharoro-Akpojotor, this is where her story first began to form. Knowledge from her own journey fueled her passion for this project, and it can entirely be felt within the film. Dreamers is a fascinating love story – both with lovers and friends – about finding the dark and colour when all might seem bleak and worthless.
Caught living and working without papers in the UK, a Nigerian women named Isio (Ronkę Adékoluęjo) is discovered after two years and brought to the Hatchworth Removal Centre. Hoping her application for asylum will be approved as long as she follows the rules, her newly introduced roommate, Farah (Ann Akinjirin) tells her this is naïve and not to get her hopes up. Nervous at first, Isio eventually adjusts to her new, and temporary, life in the Removal Centre. She gets to know Farah and begins falling for her and becomes close to her friends Nana (Diana Yekinni) and Atefeh (Aiysha Hart). But, as they all know, everything is temporary. Isio’s first appeal for asylum is rejected and Farah suggests the four escape together. Too much for Isio to handle, she denies. That is until something changes that threatens the promise of their new life together, that Isio realizes she has to be herself first.
Gharoro-Akpojotor’s script is brilliant and concise, there was nothing included that did not add to the story. Right from the beginning, she focuses on the colour, the colour she wants audiences to know is part of the characters’ lives. Opening with a poem by Carol Ann Duffy, audiences are introduced to the idea that waiting for status of asylum, or immigration, can feel the same as waiting for death. Gharoro-Akpojotor entraps the audience in this idea of love, hope and solidarity right from the beginning and keeping them there for the entire length of the film.
As Isio and Farah get closer, what they could lose becomes more prominent and their need to fight elevates. Casting her two leads, Dreamers received intense chemistry which is essential for the film. Both in terms of the relationship between Isio and Farah, and the friendships formed between them and Nana and Atefeh. It is clear that all the actors developed a deep connection with each other, one that came through immensely well on screen – allowing the audience to become more involved in their stories.
Dreamers is a colourful, beautifully crafted piece of cinema. While telling the hard truth about what happens to immigrants seeking asylum, Gharoro-Akpojotor shares this story of love and hope that can sometimes be trapped deep underneath an immigrant’s story. She reminds us it is important to find the joy in colours, and that even though their lives are tough, they have love in them too.
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