Nominated for Best Documentary Short this year at the Academy Awards, ‘The White Helmets’ takes the audience (especially in America) a front row seat to a place we hear about daily on the news but don’t actually experience.

The White Helmets are a voluntary rescue group in Syria who go into the heart of the war zones and attempt to save as many lives as possible, without asking which side they were fighting on.  The film follows the group as they save lives, while also following them to Turkey where they train (both physically and psychologically) for what they’re destined to see.

If you’re reading this, you most likely are aware that the filmmakers and the White Helmets themselves are not allowed into this country (and thus will not be at the Oscars, win or lose.  However you feel about that, you should take 40 minutes out of your day or night and appreciate what these guys are doing.

Now streaming on Netflix.