The story of this stuff begins in the once-upon-a-time land of the late 1800s, when Coca-Cola was an environmentalist’s dream—served in stylish, refillable glass bottles that were washed and reused dozens of times. Today, however, according to the Story of Stuff website, Coke has become the world's biggest plastic producer and polluter, “pumping out a quarter of a million plastic bottles every minute . . . almost one-quarter (23%) of the world’s PET plastic bottles.”
The Plastic Bag Store may appear to be any other storefront grocery; however, the items found here are all created from trash picked up off of New York City’s streets. Inside, you'll find your healthy and hearty kale made from L.L. Bean delivery bags, oranges made from thrown away Toys "R" Us bags, some “Bagarino” frozen pizza, and "Bag and Jerry's” Ice Cream. You'll even find some of your favorite magazines like “Bag Appétit” and “Bagmopolitan.”
A trip to Chicago to accept his first-place award in the One Earth Film Festival’s Young Filmmakers Contest brought Nathan Goswick more than he expected. The 17-year old’s winning entry, “Plastic Bags,” captured the attention of Andrew Behar, CEO of As You Sow, a nonprofit that presses corporations on sustainability.
Out of 196 entries total, the following nine finalists will also be recognized for their Honorable Mention films, which will screen at a separate event in April, near Earth Day. In addition, a few of these films will be incorporated into the One Earth Film Festival as “trailers” before feature films between March 6 and 15, because the content for these shorts enhances or matches the feature film content.
