Appetite for change
After watching the animation, and reading Dr Joe Smith's introduction, let us know what you think about the issues raised by this short film. Add your comments at the end of the article.
Food for Thought
Gervais Merryweather, National Film and Television School
All of the complex threads of the relationships between food, trade and environment are told through an examination of the life of an apple. The animation engages heart and mind to encourage viewers to be more mindful as they shop. Gervais Merryweather explains how he arrived at his simple and striking approach here:
The idea for this film came about when I thought of the earth as an apple and of showing humankind's effects on it as a kind of mould. As Earth is a living thing, I thought it a pretty cool idea to use another living thing to portray it.
The challenge with using something organic is that its effects would be unpredictable, though a truly strong visual. The route I took was food and in the film, it describes the journey of a standard work lunch.
The main problem with consumption is that people are simply unaware of where things come from and where things go after they eat and so by combining some striking visuals and telling them a few facts, there is a chance people will take notice.
This, as well as the visuals, tries to make people aware and to just think about the decisions they make with something as simple as food.
They will then, hopefully, be able to apply this logic to many other things they do day to day.<br>
The piece reminds me of a piece in an essay by the novelist Ian McEwan about humanity and climate change where he suggests that: ‘(t)he sheer pressure of our numbers, the abundance of our inventions, the blind forces of our desires and needs, appear unstoppable and are generating a heat, the hot breath of our civilisation, whose effects we comprehend only hazily. How can we ever begin to restrain ourselves? We appear, at this distance, like a successful lichen, a ravaging bloom of algae, a mould enveloping a fruit.’
The Open University
One answer to McEwan’s question is that talented creative people can throw themselves into the task of making consequences of everyday decisions tangible. Gervais brought together strands of the ‘economy’, ‘ecology’ and ‘design’ briefs in his animation. But researchers are increasingly revealing the hidden social and environmental harm in everyday things. Designers are increasingly pointing to ways in which this harm can be dramatically reduced but their work is still at the margins. What can be done to bring that thinking further into the mainstream? This piece focuses our attention on a familiar object and draws us into a concisely told story about impacts and choices. But this is more than factual content: the words and images promise to reach people at an emotional level. Attending to both head and heart seems central to the search for ways to ‘restrain’ ourselves.
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Appetite for Change
These issues mentioned in this video concern me every day! They should concern everybody and change peoples attitudes and behaviour before it's too late!
E.