Abstract
In this article, I analyze the centrality of the space of the garbage dump in two documentary films that portray the life and work of catadores (trash pickers) in Jardim Gramacho, an enormous dump in the state of Rio de Janeiro: Estamira (2004) and Waste Land (2009). Following the theoretical stances of Julia Kristeva and Henri Lefebvre, I propose that the landfill is an abject space that, despite being marginalized, is fundamental to understanding what Lefebvre calls neocapitalism. The garbage dump’s protagonism in the films is considered through the lens of Bill Nichols’s writings on documentary and the ethics of representing reality, which allow me to reflect on the divergent ways in which the two films confront the material, ecological, and social challenges presented by trash and the spaces where it accumulates.
Resumo
Abstract
In this article, I analyze the centrality of the space of the garbage dump in two documentary films that portray the life and work of catadores (trash pickers) in Jardim Gramacho, an enormous dump in the state of Rio de Janeiro: Estamira (2004) and Waste Land (2009). Following the theoretical stances of Julia Kristeva and Henri Lefebvre, I propose that the landfill is an abject space that, despite being marginalized, is fundamental to understanding what Lefebvre calls neocapitalism. The garbage dump’s protagonism in the films is considered through the lens of Bill Nichols’s writings on documentary and the ethics of representing reality, which allow me to reflect on the divergent ways in which the two films confront the material, ecological, and social challenges presented by trash and the spaces where it accumulates.
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