Grit

Q&A filmmaker Cynthia Wade

n 2006, mud exploded into the sky at an Indonesian gas drilling site, burying 16 villages and displacing 60,000 people. “Shot with poetic grandeur and packed with stirring political heft” (POV), this arresting new documentary invites audiences into the survivors’ muddy world, with a young survivor named Dian as our guide. As the unstoppable flow of hot sludge continues—it is predicted to continue for another decade—Grit bears witness to Dian’s transformation into a politically active teenager as she and her mother launch a campaign against the company that caused the disaster.