AITA MARI

The Stella Maris Berria is a tuna boat destined for scrapping. However, Iñigo Mijangos and Iñigo Gutiérrez, two members of the NGO Humanitarian Maritime Rescue, have an unusual idea: transform the fishing boat into a rescue boat to save refugees drowning in the Mediterranean Sea. This is how Aita Mari was born.

‘Aita Mari’ narrates the ship’s more than two-year odyssey, from its reconstruction to the completion of the first rescue.

After the complicated refitting works, which are completed thanks to the selfless help of workers and volunteers, the crew faces a huge setback: the Government of Spain denies permission to set sail. The documentary unravels the reasons for the bureaucratic obstacles and the European interests that are hidden in the decision to prevent missions like those of the Aita Mari.

Almost a year later, the crew finds a way to unblock the situation and they manage to leave. Once in the Mediterranean, they begin to search for boats in an area guarded by Libya, a failed state. The images show a rescue as well as a tense encounter with a Libyan patrol boat.

‘Aita Mari’ is the story of the collective effort of a group of anonymous citizens to help people fleeing war and hunger.

Story behind the documentary

The name “Aita Mari” honors José María Zubia (1809-1866), a Basque fisherman who gained recognition for helping both fishermen and those shipwrecked in sea storms, until in 1866, after leaving Donostia-San Sebastián for Getaria and rescue other fishermen, the sea swept him away. Since then he has not been seen again, so his death shocked the entire San Sebastian population. The impact was so great that it didn’t take long for them to build a bust to immortalize and commemorate his memory and gesture of bravery.

His boat was always ready to rescue the lost and shipwrecked, which is why it served as inspiration for the ‘Aita Mari’ maritime rescue team to start saving lives in the Mediterranean Sea.

FESTIVALS AND AWARDS

18th Film and Human Rights Festival, in Donostia-San Sebastián.

JAVI JULIO

Photojournalist and filmmaker. He has worked as a freelancer collaborating with different media and international agencies, focusing his lens on social struggles, respect for human rights and migration, which has led him to work in countries such as Jordan, Sahara, Greece, Ukraine, and the Mediterranean. Central..
He has directed short documentaries and in 2021, together with his collective and production company Nervio, he premiered the film Aita Mari in cinemas throughout Spain, his first feature-length documentary, a work of more than 3 years following an old Basque tuna boat transformed into a rescue boat for humanitarian work in the Central Mediterranean.