These pics were taken today in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, the city that suffered the worst devastation from the Tsunami a couple of years ago.
All of these people have harrowing stories; some have lost every member of their family, their homes and their livelihoods.
I'm here making a film about them, before traveling on to the USA, Lebanon, Kashmir and elsewhere to tell stories of other people who have seen tragedy and disaster come their way.
Steady, I don't yet know if it will be life-changing or not, who can tell? But, what I can say is, every person I've met on this and similar shoots has left an impression on me and that's a good thing. A little of their pain travels with me, a little of their horror travels with me, a little of their joy travels with me.
The man in #6 was swept away by the first wave that hit his village and then pushed further inland by the second. He clung to his wife and child for as long as he could before his wife slid away, taken by the current, when he could hold his son no more he sunk his teeth into the boy's shirt and held him above the water for four hours simply by the strength of his jaw. Luckily, his wife survived the wave, sadly they were the only members of their family who did.
He lost his house and his livelihood, but not his dignity. He's refused our money and he's taken nothing from us yet given us so much to help make our film. Sometimes, I think me, my friends and my family don't even know we are born...
The internet here is a bit patchy and my time is limited, but we're halfway through filming in Indonesia. The people in these parts have touched us all and we genuinely hope to be able to help. We will help.
Liam, thanks for posting these images - they are very expressive, and bring us into the lives of these people. I wish you all the best of luck on your project, and please do keep us posted! Cheers, Spyros
Thanks to all of you who have looked -even the lurkers
We've now finished our shoot in Aceh and today will fly on to Kuala Lumpur, before catching a plane ascross the pacific to LA and another one to New Orleans, our next location.
I'll post some from the US next week, in the meantime here's a few more from Indonesia:
