I had the pleasure of attending a screening of this movie presented by the Laguna Beach Film Society and Cinema Paradisio consultant Keiko Beatie. The movie is centered around a journey by Timmy Turner and American surfers as they head to Indonesia following the devastating Tsunami that destroyed villages and killed 300,000+ people.

Their plan however hits a road block and takes a ironic turn allowing them to start their own Guerrilla-relief mission. Acquiring a boat, The Mikumba, they set off with supplies and doctors they met who were in a similar situation, that is wanting to help but having no vehicle in which to do it. The crew consisted of surf journalists, Timmy's mom, the doctors and others.

The group brings food, medical supplies, and even a few goats to some of the smaller neglected islands in northern Sumatra.  The crew on more than one occasion are the first outsiders to arrive on the devastation. Watching first hand what the villages looked like brought a tear to even the most battle hardened eyes.

As they set up relief efforts the doctors are sometimes overwhelmed by the amount of people needing attention and even combat rapidly spreading tuberculosis.

If nothing else this video inspires the savior in all of us to just do something in our lives to help those less fortunate. On the high side it gives us a glimpse into a culture that even when confronted by one of the worst natural disasters in history still finds time to smile.

This is definitely one I recommend. While you may be played out on documentaries, this is one that shows what a difference even a little help can make on the people who receive it as well as the people who deliver it.

You can view a trailer here at the official website.

Tsunami Diaries

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