BEYOND UTOPIA

By Madeleine GAVIN

SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL - as FEST

Documentary - Completed 2022

Hidden camera footage augments this perilous, high-stakes journey as we embed with families attempting to escape oppression, ultimately revealing a world most of us have never seen.

Festivals
& Awards

Sundance Film Festival 2023
U.S. Documentary Competition
    • Year of production
    • 2022
    • Genres
    • Documentary
    • Countries
    • USA
    • Languages
    • ENGLISH
    • Duration
    • 115 mn
    • Director(s)
    • Madeleine GAVIN
    • Synopsis
    • A suspenseful look at the lengths people will go to gain freedom, Beyond Utopia follows various individuals as they attempt to flee one of the most oppressive places on Earth, a land they grew up believing was a paradise. At the film’s core are a mother desperate to reunite with the child she was forced to leave behind, a family of five — including small children and an elderly grandmother — embarking on a treacherous journey into the hostile mountains beyond their border, and a man of God on a mission to help these desperate souls. Leaving their homeland is fraught with danger — severe punishment if caught and possibly even execution — as well as potential exploitation by unscrupulous brokers. Family members who remain behind also may face retribution. Yet these individuals are driven to take the risk.

      Gripping, visceral, and urgent, Madeleine Gavin’s film embeds the viewer with these family members as they attempt their perilous escape, palpably conveying life-or-death stakes. The result is a singular, illuminating, and unforgettable experience.