North to Paradise

The moving real account of a man's perilous childhood trip from a small Ghanaian town to the streets of Barcelona—and the route that eventually brought him home.

Born in a remote Ghanaian town, Ousman Umar is the son of a shaman. Despite his mother passing away during childbirth, he had a happy upbringing working the fields, laying traps in the forest, and subsisting on the land. Despite the amazing and peculiar aircraft soaring through the sky, Ousman yearned for a new kind of existence. So, at the age of twelve, he departed from his hamlet and set off on a five-year adventure to Europe.

Ousman was handed off like merchandise by a loose network of smugglers at every turn as he traveled across the Sahara desert, through the intimidating metropolises of Accra, Tripoli, Benghazi, and Casablanca, and over the Mediterranean Sea aboard a packed migrant dinghy. He also constantly and ominously shared company with other migrants who found themselves penniless and alone on their way north, unable to continue onward or return home.

However, Ousman also came across kindness, compassion, and optimism on a journey fraught with prejudice, exploitation, and violence. North to Paradise is a visceral true narrative that depicts the harsh reality of life along the most perilous migration route across Africa. It also highlights the beauty of generosity in strangers, the power of giving back, and incredible tenacity in the face of unfathomable adversity.