A decade-long journey across the Pacific | Sarah Moshman | TEDxLosAltosWomen

Quick Overview

Filmmaker Sarah Moshman recounts the immense physical and mental challenges faced by the four women who rowed across the Pacific Ocean in 2015, detailing how the documentary she made about their 8,500-mile journey, "Losing Sight of Shore," ultimately secured distribution on Netflix in 2017, proving that daunting goals are achievable through perseverance.

Key Points: Sarah Moshman, a filmmaker, recounts receiving a life-changing email at age 16 about four women rowing across the Pacific Ocean. The four women rowed 8,500 miles across the entire Pacific Ocean, facing unimaginable challenges like tropical storms and equipment failures, which required them to pump their own water. The journey from San Francisco to Samoa, and then to Australia, took nine months instead of the anticipated six months. The documentary Moshman made about this feat, titled "Losing Sight of Shore," had the tagline: "Everyone has a Pacific to cross." Despite initial rejections from production companies and distributors, the film premiered on Netflix worldwide in 2017, subtitled in 25 languages. Moshman emphasizes that the success was 90% mental, highlighting the resilience required to overcome the grueling rowing schedule (24 hours a day, stroke by stroke).

Context: Filmmaker Sarah Moshman shares her personal and professional journey inspired by a group of women undertaking an extraordinary physical challenge: rowing across the Pacific Ocean. This talk, delivered at TEDxLosAltosWomen, centers on the documentary she created about this 8,500-mile expedition, illustrating themes of perseverance, mental fortitude, and the importance of telling inspiring stories.

Detailed Analysis

Sarah Moshman begins by stating her lifelong love for using the camera, which led her to make documentaries in high school. She recounts receiving a pivotal email at age 16 about four women planning to row a 29-foot boat across the Pacific Ocean, a journey she immediately recognized as a powerful story. These women, Laura Penhall, Italia Cohen, Emma, and Izzy, rowed from the Presidio Yacht Club in San Francisco, California, to Hawaii, then to Samoa, and finally to Australia. This endeavor took them nine months, significantly longer than the expected six months, covering 8,500 miles. During the crossing, they faced extreme conditions, including tropical storms, broken equipment (like a desalinateur), and the constant physical toll of rowing 24 hours a day, stroke by stroke. Moshman emphasizes that the endeavor was 90% mental. She filmed them arriving in Australia in January 2016, documenting their incredible feat of endurance. She later secured funding through crowdfunding, grants, and private donors to make the documentary, "Losing Sight of Shore," whose tagline is "Everyone has a Pacific to cross." Despite facing initial rejections from the film industry, the documentary was eventually picked up by Netflix and premiered worldwide in 2017, subtitled in 25 languages, successfully sharing the inspiring story of the crew's resilience.