Wassim and Berivan are Syrian refugees living in Turkey that want to brave the dangerous crossing from Turkey to Greece on zodiac with the help of smugglers. As they trek across Turkey to meet the smugglers they recount their escape from Syria.
Charles Emir Richards was born in San Francisco to a Turkish mother and American father growing up between both countries. He graduated the Art Center College of Design with honors in film. Living in Los Angeles he worked in the film industry doing camera and lighting work as well as 2nd unit directing until he started directing music videos with Mavi Sakal’s “Iki Yol”. Two years later he began directing commercials, which he continues to do till the present earning several national and international awards with his work. His clients include VW, Peugeot, Coca Cola, Fanta, HSBC, Is Bank, Garanti Bank, Ak Bank, & Sony, to name just a few. He started photography for Rolling Stone, turning his hobby into a second job. Since then he has been a constant contributor to Vogue and GQ Magazines. In 2014 he printed his fourth photography book, “Barikat” documenting the barricades at the Gezi Protests in Istanbul.
“The Crossing” is his first documentary film effort.
