“Ripples of Plastic" at the Figge Art Museum -- February 2.
Sunday, February 2, 3 p.m.
Figge Art Museum, 225 West Second Street, Davenport IA
With the event hosted by North High School's Green Team, and the work demonstrating the unseen impacts of Great Lakes plastic pollution, Ripples of Plastic serves as the third presentation in this year's QC Environmental Film Series hosted by River Action, its February 2 presentation at Davenport's Figge Art Museum treating viewers to a 2024 selection at the Wild & Scenic and Fresh Coast Film Festivals, as well as this year's Thunder Bay International Film Festival.
In Ripples of Plastic, audiences are invited to embark on an eye-opening journey through the unseen impacts of plastic pollution in the Great Lakes region. Guided by Dr. Sherri Mason and other regional voices, attendees will witness the vast extent of contamination pathways, effects of microplastics, and the unexpected toll on human health. Beyond individual action, the film inspires a collective movement for transformative progress toward a plastic-free future.
One of the film's chief interviewees, Dr. Sherri A. Mason is a pioneering chemist educated at the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Montana, where she has significantly contributed to the understanding of plastic pollution in freshwater ecosystems. Her influential research has been recognized in major media outlets and played a crucial role in the creation of the Microbeads-Free Water Act of 2015, signed by President Barack Obama. Mason's achievements have earned her several prestigious awards, including the EPA Environmental Champion in 2016 and the Heinz Award in Public Policy in 2018, and she currently serves as the Director of Project NePTWNE at Gannon University in Erie, Pennsylvania.
Making his feature-length directorial debut with Ripples of Plastic is Chris Langer, a well-regarded filmmaker and photographer known for his unwavering commitment to shedding light on critical issues throughout the Midwest. Born and raised in the Northeast Ohio region, Langer's connection to the natural world and his early experiences in photojournalism laid the foundation for his career. He studied at Rochester Institute of Technology, graduating in 2011 with a degree in photojournalism, and his career evolved into filmmaking soon after moving back to Cleveland, Ohio area. Langer also owns the video-production company Wonderhouse Films.
Ripples of Plastic will be shown in the Figge Art Museum's John Deere Auditorium on February 2, admission to the 3 p.m. screening is $7 with students admitted free, and more information and tickets are available by calling (563)322-2926 and visiting RiverAction.org/filmseries.
