Waste Land
Autumn 2010 Documentary series
Wednesday, December 1, 2010 at 7:00pm
Acadia Cinema's Al Whittle Theatre
450 Main Street, Wolfville, NS
Directed by Lucy Walker, João Jardim and Karen Harley
Starring Vik Muniz
Rated G ·
1h 39m
Brazil, United Kingdom
English
Waste Land
Filmed over nearly three years, Waste Land follows renowned artist Vik Muniz as he journeys from his home base in Brooklyn to his native Brazil and the world’s largest garbage dump, Jardim Gramacho, located on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro. There he photographs an eclectic band of “catadores” — or self-designated pickers of recyclable materials.
Muniz’s initial objective was to “paint” the catadores with garbage. However, his collaboration with these inspiring characters as they recreate photographic images of themselves out of garbage reveals both dignity and despair as the catadores begin to re-imagine their lives.
Walker (Devil’s Playground, Blindsight) has great access to the entire process and, in the end, offers stirring evidence of the transformative power of art and the alchemy of the human spirit.
Winner: Audience Award – World Cinema Documentary, Sundance 2010, and the Amnesty International Film Prize and the Panorama Audience Award, Berlin International Film Festival 2010.