Laboratory Exercise 2: Documentary Review

The documentary that I watched was from the Reporter's Notebook production named
“tirang pagkain sa basurahan, laman-tiyan ng ilang pilipino sa gitna ng pandemya”,
which is translated as "leftover food in the trash, the food of some Filipinos in the midst
of the pandemic ". A documentary about some filipinos eating and primaly source of
food is from the garbage can. The food is famous from the word “pag-pag” in the
philippines. The documentary is intended to raise awareness to viewers and the
importance of food. The documentary is focused on a woman named Sheila Cesista,
who works as a garbage collector, sorting and recycling plastic, bottles, and cardboard
boxes, among other things. Aside from her real job, she spends her spare time digging
among garbage cans for food, which she then cooks and serves to her family. Some of
the garbage she was digging for came from local hospitals, and it contained used face
masks, syringes, and other medical supplies.

Sheila reveals that before she begins eating from the garbage, she is only a bystander
who observes from a distance the people seeking for food before she start to do what
she seen. Sheila's everyday routines were documented in the documentary. It seems
that sheila is rummaging through a plastic garbage can that is loaded with medical
waste, which may be dangerous because sheila is not wearing any protective
equipment and is only using her bare hands and a cloth mask to do so. In her remarks,
Sheila stated that “kung hindi nami ito gagawin, paano kami mabubuhay?” Sheila
believes that, despite the fact that the virus is infectious, the only thing she can do is
pray. She simply makes from 133 pesos to 200 pesos each day from her job, which is
depends on the quantity of garbage she gathers and sorts. She spotted a plastic bag of
sweets from the garbage bag in the middle of her sorting, which she subsequently fed to
her child. After a few hours of sorting, she was able to collect enough spoiled foods and
expired items to fill a large plastic bag for her family. Later on, Sheila was able to
retrieve a lechon's head and feet, which she generously distributes with the rest of the
community. She mentioned that “Dito pag madami ang nakuha, hati-hati kami”.
The documentary was both inspiring and heartbreaking at the same time because some
Filipinos are suffering from a lack of food and have been forced to eat from the trash as
a consequence. It also puts children at risk for a variety of health problems, including As
a result of the late complications of chronic noncommunicable and communicable
diseases that the formal health sector sees and treats, chronic noncommunicable and
communicable diseases such as high blood pressure, mellitus, intended and unintended
incidents, tb, rheumatic fever, and Hiv / aids are recognized to exist in slums. Proper
sanitation remains a significant cause of diarrheal illness and death among children,
particularly those who live in slum conditions. In particular, I like how raw the
documentary was because it portrayed the truth while still capturing our emotions.
Especially the last part where Sheila found a Lechon and shares it with the rest of the
community, despite the fact that they come from underprivileged backgrounds, they still
share. The documentary is excellent because it is completely honest; the filmmakers did
not attempt to exaggerate the effects in order to gain sympathy.