The Life Beyond – ICRC
Created and Directed by Stelios Papardelas
The Life Beyond is an award-winning interactive documentary created in collaboration with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
Told through a blend of real video, photography, hand-drawn animation, immersive soundscapes, and music, it offers a powerful, human-centered narrative on migration, disappearance, and the search for connection in the shadows of forced displacement.
Structured as a triptych of stories, the documentary follows:
- Farooq’s family, fleeing across the Aegean Sea in search of safety.
- The deadly crossings at the Evros River, and the silent arrival of the missing at the morgue in Alexandroupolis.
- The forensic process of identifying bodies and reuniting families with truth, memory, and—sometimes—closure.
With complete creative freedom from the ICRC, Stelios Papardelas directed, filmed, and co-conceptualized the project with Kostas Kiriakakis (illustration & animation) and Spyros Roumeliotis (sound design & original score).
The Life Beyond has been presented at the Museum of the Red Cross in Geneva, was an official selection of the Photometria In Motion Festival, and received the International World Film Award (2024).
At its core, the project is not just about migration—it is about the weight of absence, the resilience of families, and the systems working quietly behind the scenes to bring people back into the light.
Interactive platform | Mixed-media storytelling | Greece | © Stelios Papardelas
Behind The Scenes
