Wasteland (2010)

Directed by: Lucy Walker | 99 minutes | documentary | With: Vik Muniz

Artist Vik Muniz himself grew up in the slums of Brazil, but now that he himself is the most successful artist to come from Brazil, he thinks it is time to give something back to the community in which he grew up. In ‘Waste Land’ we see what kind of people work as ‘pickers’ on Jardim Gramacho, the largest garbage dump in the world and can show that they are worth more than the garbage they work between day in and day out.

It is very hip these days: being climate neutral and dealing with the environment more consciously. This makes recycling something that will play an increasingly important role in our lives. In ‘Waste Land’ we can see how this is put into practice in the garbage dumps of Brazil where many people earn their living by fishing recyclable material from the garbage and selling it on to manufacturers. Only the poorest people from the favelas (slums) do this heavy work in a country that is still strongly divided into classes. Yet they do take credit for their jobs, because at least they don’t work in the drug trade or prostitution. Vik Muniz makes portraits of the ‘pickers’ and then turns them into large works of art from recyclable material. The photos of these artworks are sold. He gives the proceeds to Tião, the leader of the ‘pickers’, who will use the money to improve their lives through education, for example.

‘Waste Land’ is a wonderful documentary that will arouse the viewer’s great respect for the workers of Jardim Gramacho. They are often people who have experienced the most terrible things. Despite this, they have never given up and still have hope for a better life. The sympathetic artist Muniz is clearly committed to people and perhaps partly because of this he knows how to create a beautiful photo report. It might sound a bit tacky on paper, but it isn’t for a moment. The documentary does not use cheap sentiment anywhere and therefore manages to hit the mark all the better. A really beautiful and inspiring film.