In 2006, international drilling company Lapindo unleashed an unstoppable toxic mudflow into East Java, burying dozens of nearby villages and displacing 60,000 Indonesians. Directors Cynthia Wade (Academy Award® winner for FREEHELD) and Sasha Friedlander focus the tragedy around 16-year-old Dian, a survivor routinely ignored by her government, despite the unforgiving sludge continuing to engulf her home for over a decade. Chronicling the teenager’s transformation as she becomes an outspoken advocate for her community, GRIT is a timely showcase of the urgent need for political activism and the perseverance of the human spirit amidst social and environmental strife.
“Shot with poetic grandeur and stirring political heft” – POV magazine
Cynthia Wade is an Oscar®-and Emmy-winning documentary director who also directs commercials and fiction films. Her Netflix docuseries “MerPeople,” about the dangerous, beautiful world of underwater performers, is rated 100% "Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes. Cynthia’s television documentaries include “The Flagmakers” (Disney+, Emmy Winner, Critics Choice Nominee, Oscar shortlist), “Grit” (PBS, Emmy Nominee), “Mondays at Racine” (HBO, Oscar nominee), “Freeheld” (HBO, Oscar winner, Sundance winner), “Born Sweet” (Sundance winner, Oscar shortlist), “Shelter Dogs” (HBO), “Grist for the Mill” (Cinemax), “Growing Hope Against Hunger” (PBS, Emmy Winner), “Generation Startup” (Netflix), “Living the Legacy” (Sundance Channel). Her fiction short “Sproutland” won 15 awards. She directed three episodes of Apple TV+’s docuseries “Gutsy,” featuring Hillary Clinton. She is a member of DGA, AMPAS, and is represented by CAA. She has won over 50 film festival awards worldwide. She lives in Los Angeles.
