Wasteland (2010)

"A joy to watch despite the abject poverty it contains.  John DeFore, Hollywood Reporter
"...a must-see...  Mary Abbe, Minneapolis Star Tribune
"...inspiring documentary...  Stephen Holden, New York Times

Editor's Note Vik Muniz is an artist who literally creates treasure out of trash; using cast-offs he finds at garbage dumps, Muniz fashions re-creations of famous paintings, and he made an evocative series of images of children who work in sugar plantations using the leftovers from the refining process. So when filmmaker Lucy Walker asked Muniz if she could make a film about him as he worked on his next project, the two settled on what seemed like the perfect location -- Jardim Gramacho, a Brazilian landfill not far from Rio de Janeiro that's said to be the largest refuse dump in the world. Walker's documentary WASTE LAND explores Muniz's creative process as he fashions new works from what others have left behind, but it also profiles the people who live near Jardim Gramacho and make their living by sorting what's useful from what is not. Walker lends a dignity to these so-called "trash pickers" as they reveal how much of value can be found in other people's refuse and how they maintain their pride and self-respect despite their sometimes meager circumstances. WASTE LAND was an official selection at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival.

	Aaron Phillips - Additional DOP
	Moby - Composer
	Heloisa Passos - Additional DOP
	Dudu Miranda - Director of Photography
	Vik Muniz - Host
	Fabio Ghivelder - Host
	Sebastiao Carlos DosSantos - Host
	Jose Carlos da Silva Bala Lopes - Host
	Suelem Pereira Dias - Host
	Isis Rodrigues Garros - Host
	Leide Laurentina Dasilva - Host
	Valter DosSantos - Host
	Magna de Franca Santos - Host
	Lucy Walker - Director

Washington Post
"[T]he documentary is ultimately an inspiring one about the human capacity for reinvention during dark times." 12/03/2010

Chicago Sun-Times
3 stars out of 4 -- "[The film] takes as its entry point into the lives of the pickers the work of Brazilian artist Vik Muniz..." 02/09/2011

Empire
4 stars out of 5 -- "[A] quietly powerful testament to the resilience of the poorest of souls....Challenging and inspiring." 03/01/2011

Total Film
4 stars out of 5 -- "What astounds isn't their poverty, but their joie de vivre, a reminder of humanity's ability to transcend its surrounding through art or just plain optimism." 04/01/2011

The Onion A.V. Club 9 of 10
Though narrower in scope and lacking the first-person angle, Waste Land resembles Agnes Varda's great 2000 documentary The Gleaners & I, particularly in its awe of tough< creative, hard-working people who live on the margins. The dump itself is a marvel to behold, and Moby's eerie score adds a cinematic ambience that helps relieve some of the stock documentary elements, like the way Muniz's adventures are sometimes framed like a reality-TV show. It also does Muniz one better by humanizing photographs that are often too aestheticized and unresponsive to how his subjects actually live and work. Waste Land travels to an island populated by society's discards, and finds a piece of salvation. - Scott Tobias