Waste Land
200 tons of garbage is delivered to Jardim Gramacho near Rio de Janeiro, Brazil each day. This is the world's largest landfill. Almost three thousand people find employment there. They dig through the waste to find recyclable material. "Cardboard, paper, plastics, glass, metal--they collect everything." They make a living selling the materials to be shredded and made into new products. They each come from difficult backgrounds, forced to surround themselves with vultures and filth to make a living.
Artist Vik Muniz hears about the landfill and decides to go visit. He associates with the pickers and finds inspiration in their stories. He photographs them in their natural states. Then, with their help, they recreate the picture using materials from the landfill. He sells his art and donates all the proceeds back to the people. The documentary Waste Land depicts the transformation from trash to art. It also shows the changes in the lives of the people due to their experiences with Vik. Their lives are changed forever. They learn to appreciate the beauty of their own existence.
I found the community of pickers very fascinating. Many of them truly love their jobs. One man has worked there for twenty-six years. A woman cooks meals for the workers every single day. The story that particularly hit home for me is that of an eighteen year-old girl. She has worked at the landfill since was seven. She works hard to take care of her two young kids; she only gets to see them every few weeks. Being close to her age, I cannot imagine what she goes through. However, she remains positive about her situation:
"I'm proud of my work."
She feels pride in her contribution to her children and her community. Oh, how much we can learn from this young woman! I oftentimes feel that I make little to no contribution to my community. I feel very inadequate. I try to change the world, but that is a very big goal to attempt to achieve. With tears streaming down his face, one man in the film sums up my feelings perfectly:
"I just keep asking myself if it's worth it. Sometimes I feel like giving up."
Is it really worth it to keep trying to change the world? Though our efforts may be just a droplet in the whole ocean, the answer is still a resounding yes. This documentary taught me that my small contributions can and do make a difference. I may not see the effects right away, but they will be there. Instead of taking on the whole world, I can turn my focus to my hometown, my church, my apartment, my classmates. I can influence their lives through mine. My favorite quote from the whole movie was this:
"Sometimes we see ourselves as so small, but people see us as so big...so beautiful."
Garbage is made beautiful by the hands of Vik Muniz. Our communities can be made beautiful by the hands of each one of us.
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Waste Land is a 2010 documentary directed by Lucy Walker. It has received many awards, including an Oscar nomination. I highly recommend the film. Check out the trailer at http://www.wastelandmovie.com/index.html. You can also watch the entire film for free at http://www.hulu.com/watch/397079.
Artist Vik Muniz hears about the landfill and decides to go visit. He associates with the pickers and finds inspiration in their stories. He photographs them in their natural states. Then, with their help, they recreate the picture using materials from the landfill. He sells his art and donates all the proceeds back to the people. The documentary Waste Land depicts the transformation from trash to art. It also shows the changes in the lives of the people due to their experiences with Vik. Their lives are changed forever. They learn to appreciate the beauty of their own existence.
I found the community of pickers very fascinating. Many of them truly love their jobs. One man has worked there for twenty-six years. A woman cooks meals for the workers every single day. The story that particularly hit home for me is that of an eighteen year-old girl. She has worked at the landfill since was seven. She works hard to take care of her two young kids; she only gets to see them every few weeks. Being close to her age, I cannot imagine what she goes through. However, she remains positive about her situation:
"I'm proud of my work."
She feels pride in her contribution to her children and her community. Oh, how much we can learn from this young woman! I oftentimes feel that I make little to no contribution to my community. I feel very inadequate. I try to change the world, but that is a very big goal to attempt to achieve. With tears streaming down his face, one man in the film sums up my feelings perfectly:
"I just keep asking myself if it's worth it. Sometimes I feel like giving up."
Is it really worth it to keep trying to change the world? Though our efforts may be just a droplet in the whole ocean, the answer is still a resounding yes. This documentary taught me that my small contributions can and do make a difference. I may not see the effects right away, but they will be there. Instead of taking on the whole world, I can turn my focus to my hometown, my church, my apartment, my classmates. I can influence their lives through mine. My favorite quote from the whole movie was this:
"Sometimes we see ourselves as so small, but people see us as so big...so beautiful."
Garbage is made beautiful by the hands of Vik Muniz. Our communities can be made beautiful by the hands of each one of us.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Waste Land is a 2010 documentary directed by Lucy Walker. It has received many awards, including an Oscar nomination. I highly recommend the film. Check out the trailer at http://www.wastelandmovie.com/index.html. You can also watch the entire film for free at http://www.hulu.com/watch/397079.
When you aren't loaded down with homework and studying and actually have time to read a book for fun (so like Christmas break maybe?) you should read the rent collector. It's about a family in Cambodia who live at a dump and collect trash for a living. I really, really liked it. And it was so eye opening to think about people actually living in those kinds of conditions.
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