Savannah man chronicles community challenges post-Matthew in short film

It has yet to be six months since Hurricane Matthew struck the coast of Savannah, leaving much damage in its wake.

But as Patrick Rippman showed in his documentary, "Regrowth," the storm left an economic mark and created a new sense of community.

Rippman, a Savannah local who studied communications (with a focus in film and video) for four years at Savannah Arts Academy, said he felt like he should do something after seeing what damage the storm brought to his community.

"Since I was a local in a story going on, I figured it would be good for the community," he said.

The nearly 7-minute long documentary chronicles the aftermath of Matthew in Savannah. Aided by talking heads such as WTOC chief meteorologist John Wetherbee and Georgia Forestry Commission regional specialist Joe Burgess, the short film shines a light on some measures citizens can take to prevent similar damage in the future from trees to homes and vehicles. The film also highlights the bond formed within the community after the storm.

"I asked everyone every question I could think of to figure out a way to make it a narrative," Rippman said. He added that his questions revealed two major lessons: Watch your trees, and get to know your neighbors.

"It started to become clear that there was a fix before," Rippman said. One of the takeaways from "Regrowth" was that having someone come out to your property and inspect your trees could prevent them from causing damage during a storm - as many did during Matthew.

"The pine trees were a big complaint," Rippman said. "I think for the most part, keeping an eye on the area around you (is key)."

Rippman left his downtown Savannah-area home the day before the storm, so he wasn't there to experience the brunt of it, but he knows that it will take multiple years to get the landscape back to normal.

But as "Regrowth" shows, the return to normalcy is happening.

"On one hand, it was really amazing how people came together after that storm. On the other hand, it is kind of sad we don't come together like that all the time," Courtney Papy, lead organizer of Emergent Savannah, said in the video.

Rippman agrees and said making the documentary has affected him, challenging him to seek out more stories like this in the future.

"Doing (the documentary) opened my eyes on telling a story unfolding in front of you," he said. "I really didn't know where (the story about the hurricane) was going."

"Regrowth" is currently available on You Tube.