This short film emphasizes the “contrast between massive tourism growth and the insufficient capacity of local human resources to manage it wisely“

By Ayla Maxwell

WILDsound Festival just released their showcase of documentary shorts on their streaming platform. While all the shorts were important, I found Plastic Tourism to be the most thought-provoking and interesting out of the bunch. 

The short film is focused on the issue of plastic pollution in Yogyakarta, Indonesia and what citizens are doing to stop it. This film marks Ira Setiawati’s directorial debut. 

Setiawati is the founder of Jiwa Laut, a non-profit organization that focuses on “ecolodges” and building with eco-bricks. As explained in the film, eco-bricks are made from soft plastics, like plastic bags stuffed into plastic bottles. Once dense enough, these bottles can be used as bricks and in constructing foundations for houses and stairs.

Many locals from the area will collect litter they find on the beaches and create these eco-bricks, which can then be collected by organizations like Setiawati’s. In return, the locals get paid for their work. Not only is this movement helping with the pollution problem in Yogyakarta, but it is also aiding in the economic growth of the city as people now have an accessible way to make some extra money. 

While the film is only 18 minutes long, it includes many great interviews and some beautiful shots of the local area. My favourite segment was about a group of children using plastic that they had found on the beaches to make toys to play with. It’s bittersweet to see these children ingeniously repurpose trash in their town; while they are being creative, it is sad to think that they have been left to clean up a mess they did not make.  The narrative of the film is reinforced with clips of the massive amounts of trash covering the otherwise beautiful beaches. 

As Setiawati says, this film provides commentary on the “contrast between massive tourism growth and the insufficient capacity of local human resources to manage it wisely.” Known for its beautiful beaches, Yogyakartamore — specifically the area of Gunung Kidul — is a growing tourist destination, but the government has not properly supported the area enough to manage the influx of visitors that the area is receiving. 

Overall, this film was able to generate powerful storytelling on a compelling topic.  Given that it was the entire crew’s debut film, some things could be improved on (like subtitles and quality of shots), but it is truly a documentary worth watching. The quality of the film does not really impact the message, it is still an incredibly strong film. 

The film is only currently available through the WILDsound streaming service, which comes with a subscription fee. The film is still making its rounds through the festival space.