"Europe has always been a continent of immigrants, but the prevailing idea now is that of locking it up like a fortress," Melgar said in an interview with Sputnik.
Melgar, who is of Spanish descent, said his new documentary, "El Albergue" ("The Refuge"), focuses on an asylum of the same name in Lausanne. It shelters about 50 immigrants daily, turning away about the same number of homeless people due to lack of space, according to the director.
The documentary will premiere at the Human Rights Watch Film Festival in London as Britain is preparing to vote in a May 2015 general election, where right-wing parties are trying to capitalize on surging anti-immigrant sentiment to woo voters.
Melgar said he does not expect his film to change people's minds immediately, but stressed "El Albergue" could influence younger generations of Europeans, who, he said, have been spooked by far-right campaigners into believing that immigrants are the reason for current social problems.
"I hope that my films will be like a seed that grows slowly and needs sun and water, but eventually becomes a tree," Melgar said.
He added that migration is a natural human behavior as man has been on the move throughout the history. Barriers and borders are against human nature, he added.
As a Swiss national with an immigrant background, Melgar said it was easy for him to empathize with those who have been forced to leave their homes and look for a better life.
Melgar became an undocumented immigrant in Switzerland at the age of two after arriving with his parents. Until 2004, Swiss authorities prohibited immigrants from bringing children.
