Bethany Hamilton, soul surfer and survivor

If you know the surf scene, you'll know who Bethany Hamilton is. On 31 October 2003, the 13-year-old Hawaiian prodigy was riding the waves along Tunnel Reef north of Kauai when a five-metre-long tiger shark ripped her left arm off. Despite losing 60 percent of her blood in the water, she survived the attack and was back surfing four weeks later.

Bethany Hamilton's autobiography, Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family, and Fighting to Get Back on the Board, sold nearly 1.5 million copies. It's now being made into a film by Sony Pictures. Soul Surfer stars Dennis Quaid (as Bethany's father), Helen Hunt (as Bethany's mother) and AnnaSophia Robb (as Hamilton).

A Bible verse — Jeremiah 29:11 — gave Bethany Hamilton hope after she lost her arm: "For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

"That gave me peace," Hamilton told Pasadena Weekly. "Of course I can't say I didn't ever get frustrated, because, yes, I did; but eventually I moved on, and I hope this movie can show people the way to do that in their lives."