Maria Belon is more than just a tsunami survivor. She is a woman who has experienced a horrific tragedy and lived to tell the tale.

Her story is the subject of Juan Antonio Bayonas The Impossible, an emotional and riveting account of the 2004 tsunami. It stars Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor as a couple who become separated when the deadly wave strikes their tropical resort and washes them in different directions. They spend most of the movie trying to find each other and their three young children.

Belon is a petite dark haired woman originally from Spain, but who has lived in such diverse places as Mexico and Japan as the wife of business executive. She lost part of a leg in the tragedy, but miraculously (spoiler alert), she managed to reunite with the rest of her family by sheer luck. More than 283,000 died.

Belon, once a family doctor turned stay-at-home mom, emerged from the ordeal a different person. She is someone who has gained a greater respect for life, love and the power of nature.

She worked closely with the Spanish filmmaking team to tell her story and insists that 99 percent of what is depicted on screen actually happened. She met several times with the Oscar-nominated Watts, who plays her character (as an Englishwoman, one of the few changes) onscreen, and is happy with the result.