Have you heard of the Story of Stuff? It’s a friendly animated-documentary about the unfriendly issue of consumerism and unsustainable production. Narrated by Annie Leonard and produced in 2007, it’s a fantastically accessible way to learn a lot as the information is presented in a light hearted way with cute animations. It’s free to watch and share, so have a look!
This little gem caused such a stir that it’s now grown into a whole organisation, called the Story of Stuff Project. They’ve since made loads more productions in the same style, such as the Story of Cap & Trade, the Story of Cosmetics, the Story of Electronics (all on their website) and now they’re working on the Story of Change. If you like what they’re up to then why not donate? They don’t charge anyone for the use of their films as they want the message to be flung as far and wide as possible… But that doesn’t mean they don’t cost money to make.
I think this is great because the films, like I said, are really quite easy-watching so the audience is much wider than for something dry, factual and depressing. This is really important because it’s power in number’s and everything… Any way to reach out to the masses is gold dust.
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Also, after looking at their website for the first time in a while I’ve been watching the Story of Broke. It’s about how the American government collects everyone’s taxes but then says their too broke to build the better future the people want – the one with more jobs, better health care, clean air and water, and quality education. But of course the USA isn’t broke at all, it’s the richest country on Earth. The only problem is they spend most of the people’s taxes on the military, bailing out irresponsible banks and giving away huge subsidies to polluting and unethical corporations. The short film assures us there is enough money to create the future we want and we have to demand our money is spent on this goal. Here it is:
Enjoy!
Earth Baby 