From Dust

The tragic aftermath of the massive tsunami that devastated Asia in late 2004 is reflected in the stories of three survivors in this documentary. In Sri Lanka, a law long specified that people were not allowed to live within three hundred feet of the ocean. While this was rarely if ever enforced before the tsunami hit, after the storm wiped out homes along the Sri Lankan coast regulators have begun vigorously policing the area, primarily to keep the area clear so that new resorts can be built where poor people once called home. Already homeless, now many in Sri Lanka have been forced to move to the hills, adding to the displacement of many (as well as costing some fishermen their jobs). As filmmaker Dhruv Dhawan examines the political corruption that has kept relief money from many who need it most, he also follows three men whose lives were changed by the storm -- Ravi, who no longer trusts the water surrounding him; Cameron, who has lost his faith that good will win out; and Siril, whose belief in the power of the elements was reinforced by the disaster. From Dust received its North American premiere at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival.