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Winner of the World Cinema Audience Award at Sundance 2010, Waste Land is an inspirational story following renowned Brazilian artist Vik Muniz’s latest and most elaborate project. Muniz, originally from a poor family in São Paulo, primarily uses garbage and food waste to create his socially conscious pieces. We follow Muniz to Jardim Gramacho, one of the largest garbage dumps in the world, located on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro. Here he will create his latest installation with the help of several remarkable catadores, or pluckers, who make their living by sourcing recyclable materials from the garbage. Tiao, a dreamer who founded a catadores cooperative, and 18-year-old Suelen, a pregnant mother of two, are but two pluckers who become both Muniz’s collaborators and subjects. The work changes not only their view of themselves, but also their view of the world. Waste Land is a testament to the empowering effects of the creative process. - Shannon Abel

Co-presented with Institute for Contemporary Culture at the ROM.

Media Coverage

Globe and Mail (4-Star Capsule Review), Macleans (Capsule Review), CityNews (Capsule Review) NOW Magazine (4-star Review), Eye Weekly (4-star Review)