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SOUTH JORDAN — A local high school teacher is getting attention for a short film he produced about the life of a man he met on his mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Tyler Bastian produced the film, titled "Everything is Incredible," along with two other local filmmakers, Tim Skousen and Trevor Hill. The 10-minute film tells the story of Agustín, a Honduran man living in poverty who has what some would call an impossible dream.
Agustín started to build a helicopter in 1958 out of trash and discarded materials he found in his poverty-ridden village in Honduras. He was young, ambitious and thought it would take only three months. Now, 54 years later, he continues to build, realizing the work is much more difficult than he originally thought.
"I can explain the function of each part because each part took years of work," he says in the 10-minute documentary "Everything is Incredible." "For everyone, it's been a cause for mockery. Because the whole world thinks it's impossible … that I'm just crazy."
Bastian, a teacher at Paradigm High School in South Jordan, didn't think the man was crazy.
"I was so impressed by his philosophy on life," Bastian said. "I was 19 and trying to figure out what I wanted from life. To see someone so poor have it all figured out inspired me."
Agustín is confined to a wheelchair because of a childhood bout of polio. It's an old wheelchair, because he decided when he was given a new wheelchair from the U.S. that he should take it apart and use the parts for his helicopter. He has a keen mind, his neighbors say.
"I never felt capable, because I'm a shoemaker," he said. "Moreover, I was born lame. My right leg is shorter than my left leg. I've had other difficulties resulting from the fight of life."
Tyler Bastian's goal is to see the helicopter travel to schools throughout the state, "teaching kids what they can do and showing them the power of ingenuity, patience and what someone can accomplish."
Despite his difficulties, he keeps building — strengthened by those who believe in him, and unconcerned with those who don't.
"The problem is that everything is incredible and people don't accept it," he said. "Now we have computers, and telescopes in space looking out into the void. And a ton of other marvelous things."
It is that outlook that Bastian says draws people to Agustín and leaves them for better.
"My experience has changed my life, and that's why I told the story," Bastian said. "Seeing this story change other people's lives has been one of the most exciting experiences of my life."
Skousen, too, has been changed by Agustín.
"Agustin is an inspiring man and proves that sometimes it's not the destination but the journey that matters most in life," Skousen said. "His attitude in the face of adversity can be applied to anyone struggling in their own lives. I'm a better person for knowing his story."
