ILLEGAL

Tania has been an ‘illegal’ Russian immigrant in Belgium for the past 10 years, relying on forged papers since her residence application was turned down. She lives as inconspicuously as possible together with her 14-year-old son. After a police spot-check she is detained in a centre for deportation, although she refuses to reveal her true identity. Her fear of discovery is exacerbated by anxiety about her son, who has taken refuge with her friend Zina, another illegal alien. Olivier Masset-Depasse spent one year researching the living conditions of asylum seekers in Belgium before making his film, which holds up a mirror to ‘Fortress Europe’.