Wisconsin Film Festival: Souleymane’s Story

Set over two urgent days in Paris, Souleymane’s Story follows an undocumented Guinean immigrant navigating the city’s streets as a bike courier while preparing for his high-stakes asylum interview. Part of an underground economy of couriers renting verified accounts, Souleymane pedals from dawn to nightfall, racing against both delivery deadlines and the strict curfew of his shelter. His life is a delicate balancing act—juggling exhausting work, collecting paperwork and payment for his immigration broker, and memorizing the details of a revised asylum narrative that could determine his future. Despite the relentless pressure, moments of warmth and humanity shine through: a shared joke with fellow couriers, an act of kindness for an elderly customer, a fleeting connection with a kebab vendor. Director Boris Lojkine presents Paris from a radically unfamiliar perspective, capturing the city not as a picturesque metropolis but as a landscape of obstacles and invisible boundaries for those who remain unseen. Like Ken Loach or the Brothers Dardennes, Lojkine portrays Souleymane’s world with unflinching realism. First-time actor Abou Sangare delivers a deeply empathetic performance as the title character, culminating in a raw, gut-wrenching interview scene that lays bare his struggle. Souleymane’s Story is a quietly powerful film that forces us to see Paris—and its hidden labor force—through the eyes of those fighting to belong.