The start

Even though I had no idea of what I was going to do the film about when I entered the classroom last week, I did as I left it. The idea hit me in the middle of the class. During our first seminar our professor proposed an unusual and extremely helpful exercise: choose a spot in the classroom, lay down and close your eyes. Then, we went through a short- imaginative journey that brought me back to the past weeks of my life and what I went through (Christmas holidays). It was easy then for me to decide: I am going to talk about survival. When I say survival I mean the human capability of humans to go through and overcome challenging and sometimes horrific life experiences. Those experiences are not only survived but can become a source of wisdom, resilience and positivity that will fuel and give an unique meaning to their lives. In this respect, I want to explore the life experiences of three friends of mine whom I admire for how they have survived some very tough experiences of mental illness, family trauma, a criminal history of drugs and violence. Finally, I would like to use their stories to convey an important message to all: life is beautiful, despite the trauma, the pain, the hurt, the confusion, the violence we experience and go through. I would like to show both the depth, the beauty and wit that life has to offer and encourage everyone to find their worthiness within their own lives, whatever that might be.