Louisville documentary filmmaker Megan Sweeney shares a glimpse into one family’s experience rebuilding after the fire and hopes the documentary shows other wildfire survivors that recovery is possible.

Sweeney’s documentary “Way the Wind Blows” features Heather Szucs and her family, who lost their Louisville home in the Dec. 30, 2021, Marshall Fire. Over 1,000 homes in Louisville, Superior and unincorporated Boulder County were destroyed in the fire.

Sweeney said she did not set out to make a documentary after the fire. She sat on the idea of making a video to capture a glimpse into the event and the rebuilding process. Multiple neighbors told Sweeney to reach out to Szucs to hear her story.

“Everyone who said to reach out to Heather (Szucs) talked about how badass and brave she is, and it’s true,” Sweeney said.

At first, Sweeney said it did not feel right to film a traumatic and delicate moment in the community. But about two months after the fire, she knew it was important to capture the rebuilding process in real time.

“I think it’s important to document history accurately, and have this story told and have this experience shared too. I hope it helps people process,” Sweeney said.

Szucs said at the time of filming, she did not have the emotional space to think too deeply about letting someone document the process of her losing her home and rebuilding. But Szucs said she also knew it was important to document a devastating fire and how the community rebuilds. Filming the documentary helped Szucs and her family process the event she said.

Now, Szucs has connected with families who recently lost their homes in the Los Angeles fires. She said she is happy to have a documentary showing that rebuilding is possible.

“For them, it’s going to be part of their processing, if they get to see (the documentary) and hope, because they see that we were able to get through it,” Szucs said.

Szucs said that showing her vulnerability, her strength and her kids being happy and healthy after the fire is a way to show other families going through the same experience that they can make it.

The 17-minute-long documentary is just a glimpse into one family’s experience with the fire, Sweeney said. It starts with footage from her, the Louisville Police Department and many neighbors during the evacuation. The documentary then follows Szucs and her family as they sift through the ashes of their old home, getting the building permits for her new home, breaking ground and the end credits of the documentary show her new home.

Sweeney said one of her favorite moments is where one of Szucs’ daughters is back at the lot where their house was burned, where they were ssifting through the ashes. One of Szucs’ daughters said that she was happy to return to the ashes of her home, because the grass around her house is still growing.

“And she’s like ‘but I’m happy because I see that the grass is growing and it’s green,’” Sweeney said, “I think about that all the time, so I try to apply that to anything in life.”

The documentary will be featured in the Colorado Environmental Film Festival in Golden, and has previously aired on Colorado PBS 12.

More information about the documentary and where to watch it is at bigheartfilm.com/waythewindblows.