Depiction Of Garbage Problems In The Film Wasteland

One of the biggest problems in the world today is the way we take have come to neglect of our environment. For example, a lot of landfills all around the world do pose hazards to the environment. One of the largest Landfills in the world is in Brazil. It is known that this landfill does receive more trash daily than any other known landfill. About 7,000 tons of garbage/waste comeі daily to the Jardim Gramacho landfill. Many people have worked in the landfill for about their whole lives which is very hazardous but is their way to provide for their family and live. Vik Muniz is an artist and photographer born in Brazil. He did a documentary called “Wasteland” he did go beyond the expectations to go ahead and create his masterpiece of art. He did go there with the intentions of teaching them lessons. Also, he was trying to give them a reimagine of what their life could be like. Vik Muniz did not intend to change lives of catadores, but he did. Vik Muniz wanted to paint the “pickers of garbage” in the Jardim Gramacho.

Garbage collectors or otherwise known as catadores. The catadores make a living by turning waste/trash into furniture, jewelry and works of arts. Sebastiao Carlos Dos Santos aka Tiao is one of the catadore and the president of the association of Pickers of Jardim Gramacho. He stated “’We are not pickers of garbage; we are pickers of recyclable materials’”. Tiao was one of the main characters in the film “Waste Land”. While Vik Muniz was their filming, he did meet and follow the lives of less fortunate people while he was taking photos of the waste. There was seven catadores that Muniz pieces lead them to now open for a better life. You can see the despair that is expressed their faces while they tell their life stories. The amount of dignity and how they hold their self's with while talking about their job. I think the heartwarming part of the whole this is when they cry over Muniz artwork. Watching the catadores change while he completes his artwork is an amazing sight. It does show how people who hit rock bottom and have close to nothing but still making their job good and taking pride.

While the film shows many different things, it does show that the catadores do lead a harsh life. Many are away from their family or are alone. They are dealing with being sick, because being in that landfill everyday with the number of hours they do work does contribute to their health issues. A garbage picker named Suelem Pereira Dias. She is 18 years old; she has two children already and awaiting the arrival of third child. She is very proud of herself for not having to sell herself for sex or deal drugs. She job is an honest one and she is very hard working. This example of how she works is so valuable to the overall story because it really shows you how much she does just to provide for her family. She doesn’t stay at home like other women she travels miles to work and make sure her family is supported.

The issues that the catadores faced relate to what I see where I live is how the amount of homeless people we have around the city. They dig though the trash and get food or drinks they can consume. They also look for any recycling bottles, cans and scrap metal. It does help a big chunk of the homeless so that they able to do something for money while also helping our environment. Many People look at less fortunate people and they see that are in a way gross or dirty and just in general judge metal. But that’s just today society. Social prejudice is a preconceived, unreasonable idea or feeling, especially a hostile one, regarding an ethnic, racial, social, or religious group. This happens very often everyday into society.

Muniz does change the lives of the catadores and becomes a hero. He did so many different things, like showing them how it could be different for their situations. It leads them to have to realize a new life. Muniz did change Tiaos dos Santos life completely. , he is the president of the landfill. He was photographed in an abandoned tub, “The Death of Marat” from 1793. The photograph was sold for over 50,000 US dollars. He used the money to give back to the catadores. He also wants to help the environment as much as he can. Tiao was ready to give up in the beginning he was so discouraged when he meets Vik Muniz. At the end he knows ambitions can take you far. The whole message is that trash can be recycled and given a new purpose until it is finally buried in a landfill. Muniz sells their portraits of garbage and giving back to the pickers. So, they can all try to live better lives.

Now after all is said and done, the catadores now know the importance of life. Muniz didn’t go to Brazil, thinking he would impact them the way he did by changing their lives. With his help and artwork, the catadores where able to reimagine what their lives could one day be. Magna de Franca Santos is one of the seven catadores that pointed out a very important part about Americans. How they could care less about trash/waste that is thrown away and not even taking a second to think about where the trash gets taken at the end of the day. Because we don’t have to worry or see the process of what happens with the trash after the city picks it up. Another catadores named Valter Santos said a couple weeks before he passed that “People sometimes say ‘one single can?’ One single can is of great importance because 99 is not 100 and that single one will make a difference”. This is what would help us in today's world because attitude and trying is everything. Basically, we Americans need to realize that 1% can make such a different when it comes to the environment. The film does one very important thing that cannot be ignored which is that not only trash can be recycled and given a new life. Humans as well can recycle their lives as well. With a positive mindset that anyone can do anything they set their minds to, that’s how things will get accomplished. Anything is possible no matter who you are, if you are a catadore or not, it's all possible.