Egoiste - Lotti Latrous

A new documentary about the Swiss humanitarian.

Everything that Lotti Latrous has created on the Ivory Coast of Africa in the last seven years was based on a number of serious and difficult life decisions. Having lived a fulfilling family life, the mother of three began to critically question her choices up that point, raising self-doubt about the meaning of her affluent lifestyle. In her quest to understand, Lotti began to see herself as overly dependent on the social norms and demands of her society. But having had everything and conformed perfectly, she realized that she was unfulfilled.

She began to work for the Mother Theresa Hospice in Ivory Coast, accompanying the dying, and for the first time understood the importance and richness of life and realized how much she had to offer. Her decision to stay in Africa and open an AIDS clinic there offered her an opportunity to explore what it meant to live freely. It was a choice that society could not easily understand because 'Madame Lotti' essentially abandoned her family, including her nine-year-old daughter Sarah, in order to provide a home and give love to the sick and needy people of Adjouffou, an Abidjan slum.

Latrous calls herself the "biggest egoist of the world" because of the social judgment she was confronted with and moral conflicts in regard to her family that she was obliged to respond to. Today she feels certain her decision was a good one. Her personal journey was incredibly meaningful for her and brought her the liberation she craved from a luxurious life that carried little meaning for her. From having had everything, she gave up almost all of it, yet now she feels more fortunate than ever.

By loosening her family obligations and following her heart, Lotti created a new life for herself and the people around her, for which she is respected internationally. Her incredible dedication to work, her enormous giving, and her will to fight against injustice has made her a role model for many who enthusiastically support her. And yet, all long, she’s only doing what she wants to do.