Reflection

Reflection

As a filmmaker, while I love to make my own narrative films, I believe that film is an extremely powerful media that can be utilized for raising social awareness. This is why for my submission I choose to make a short animated film to communicate information about the dangers of plastic in the ocean. The film takes place in the future and opens on a campfire under the sea. An old and wise turtle tells a group of younger turtles a scary story about a beast that used to roam the waters- Plastic. The story provides a serious tone about the harm of plastics by providing specific factual evidence while also posing solutions to the problem and bringing in a sense on comedy as well.

As someone who lives and has grown up on the beach, plastics and the harm they can cause to marine life and the environment are a concerning and pressing issue for me. Whenever I walk on the beach I always pick up as much plastic as I can find to help preserve the beauty of the beaches. I have also seen the toll on marine life- personally saving various marine species from plastic digestion. But it wasn't until I took Marine Ecology this year that I really began to understand the almost irreversible effects that plastic has had already. Seeing how much plastic gets stuck in ocean gyres and by dissecting albatross boluses, I have become more aware of what happens to the plastics that we use. I hope that my film will help someone else realize the dangers of plastic and take little steps to make their daily life more eco-friendly.