Mathieu Willcocks was born in Paris in 1988 and grew up in Hong Kong.

He started in photography after an internship at the VII Photo Agency in Paris in 2012, during which he started shooting assignments for The New York Times. He obtained a MA in photojournalism and documentary photography at the London College of Communication in 2013.

Mediterranean Migration
Spot News, third prize stories
July 22, 2016

Two men panic and struggle in the water, during a rescue attempt after the dinghy they were trying to cross from Libya in had deflated.

Conflict, persecution, political instability and poverty in parts of Africa and the Middle East continued to compel people to make dangerous sea crossings to seek a better life in Europe. Following a migration deal between the EU and Turkey, the numbers of refugees crossing the Aegean to Greece dropped, but arrivals in Italy, across the Mediterranean Sea from North Africa, went up sharply. According to the UNHCR, 181,436 people made that crossing in 2016, an 18 percent increase on 2015. Refugees are frequently crammed into unseaworthy craft, often without lifejackets or sufficient food, water or fuel. Many do not survive the three-day journey to Italy. Rescue vessels operated by NGOs and charities patrol international waters off the north Libyan coast to assist people in distress.