Since it’s creation in the 1950’s, scientists have discovered that over 8 billion metric tons of plastics have been produced world wide. If this baffles you, researchers have also found that half of the plastic that’s ever been made has been produced in the last 13 years.

Plastic is cheap, versatile and durable. It’s being used in everything from the fibers in clothing, to medical equipment to even the construction of air crafts. Despite it’s usefulness, the issue with plastic is where it’s ending up. According to the study, of all plastic that has been produced in the world, only about 9 percent hast been recycled. 12 percent has been incinerated and the rest has ended up in landfills, oceans or other natural environments. Since almost all plastic is non-biodegradable, it could be hundreds over years before any of it starts to break down.

Because of these stats, I believe that plastic wastage and plastic production would make a great concept for an online documentary. While I have yet to plan how the online documentary will be structured, I have a vague idea in my head it will be heavily reliant on visually striking images and video content of polluted natural environments as well as landfills showing the effects of plastic overproduction. I also plan to create an ambient soundtrack to accompany the online documentary that will make the experience more immersive for the viewer. The online documentary will also be non linear, allowing the user to navigate the scenes in any sequence that they wish. The focus will be less on story telling, and rather on providing factual and informative information in a visually and audibly stimulating way.

Sources:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/entry/plastic-produced-1950s-study_n_59704ca5e4b0110cb3cba57e

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2018/06/plastic-planet-waste-pollution-trash-crisis/