Wes Anderson-style short film about rural Indonesia raises awareness about clean water
- Text by Shelley Jones
The recent hoo-ha around Band Aid 30 should have been enough to persuade anyone that the days of poverty porn (in the name of charity) are over. It’s patronising, no matter how good your intentions are.
Which is why this video ‘Sammy The Explorer’, created by Stefan Hunt for Hurley H2O and SurfAid Sumba, is such a refreshing departure from the usual tummy-turningingly earnest narrative.
The video shows a bunch of surfers (or ‘ocean people’ lol) representing the non-profit organisations, who have worked with local communities over the last three years to build wells providing access to clean and safe drinking water for over 7,000 people.
The relationship between the surfers and the local people is explored in a creative and tongue-in-cheek way and draws light to an interesting and worthwhile project without pulling too hard on the heart strings.
A humble success in the age of overblown Facebook challenge-led campaigns.
Find out more about Hurley H20 and SurfAid Sumba.
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