Hostile | Storyteller

[NOTE: Hostile available until October 21, 2024.]

Hostile examines the UK’s “Hostile Environment,” a term coined by Theresa May in 2012 to refer to a collection of immigration policies she introduced as Home Secretary. It captures the atmosphere the government wanted to create for migrants in the country, with the intention of provoking them to leave the UK of their own accord.

Immigration remains a prominent topic in the UK news. It was a central issue during the 2024 election, with policies like the controversial Rwanda Asylum Plan sparking debate.

This film maintains its relevance as the lives of vulnerable members of society in the UK get increasingly used as political football. The film also poses the question of what it means to be British and how it feels to be told you do not belong.

In 2021, the Points Based Immigration System restricted entry to the UK to only those whom the Government believes will contribute the most to the UK economy. This attitude continues. Most recently, in 2024, the government increased the minimum salary for a Skilled Worker Visa by nearly fifty percent, reduced visas for health and social care workers, and stopped international students from bringing dependents.

The film examines the impact these policies are having on Britain today, and thereby exposes to a certain point the anti-immigrant sentiments that fueled the August 2024 wave of riots.

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