This short film–for King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research from Publicis Middle East and Dejavu Dubai, written and directed by Tahaab Rais (of Publicis and Dejavu)–tells the stories of seemingly disconnected strangers around the world, living their lives, but remaining connected by something unexpected.
A young man hiking to the peak of a mountain in the snow.
A little girl honing her rugby skills.
A single mother enjoying time in the kitchen messing about with her two kids.
A pianist performing at a café once again
A dad telling a bedtime story to his kid.
A young graduate capturing a key milestone moment in life with his parents.
An old man enjoying his time feeding birds in a park.
A mother, whose eyesight is in question, winds up seeing her toddler for the first time ever.
What connects all these slices of life? (Spoiler alert: you may want to view the film before going on reading this description).
The moments of life–mundane, joyous, revelatory–are made possible by organ donation.
And in each scene witnessing these moments is the organ donor, proving that: “We live on through what we give.”
Dearly departed organ donors live with us through their generosity and live-saving (heart) or live-enhancing (eyes) gifts.
“Strangers” encompasses the truth that there are strangers who impact our lives in ways that make us feel alive, but also, in ways that make them feel alive to all of us and their loved ones.
Adding to the significance of this film’s message is that it’s from Saudi Arabia where organ donation is misperceived to be prohibited by religion. However, religions in the region and elsewhere encourage saving lives–and organ donation is a way to do so, provided it does not harm the donor, and it is done after death to save others’ lives.
A deceased donor can donate and save up to eight lives by donating organs after death. And we see eight stories/slices of life in “Strangers”.
With “Strangers”, the King Faisal Hospital takes on the organ transplantation taboo but with velvet gloves, by creating a story that asks one simple question: What is an act that makes one’s life worth more?
