NEW MEDIA PROJECT "PEEL ME"

Peeling Back the Waste of Overconsumption

A VR documentary about our relationship with organic waste and consumer habits

Peel Me, a double VR experience, premiered in March 2026 at the Immersive XR section of the 28th Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival. Through a VR headset, viewers are engaged in a truly surrounding 360 space where fact and drama are combined. Suitable for audiences of all ages, it has already surprised festival goers in Thessaloniki.

The project is accompanied by a photographic exhibition that raises questions about uselessness in our contemporary world.
“My aim is to create a multilayered experience for both young and adult audiences, hoping to open a dialogue about consumerism, sustainability, and our relationship with nature and the goods it offers us. At the same time, the project comments on the notions of beauty and ugliness, usefulness and ephemerality, and on the way we approach and interpret what is valuable, what beauty is, and how long it lasts."

 

Viewers, wearing VR headsets, will find themselves in places they normally do not have access to. They will experience firsthand what it is like to sit at a table where volumes of food accumulate and they will find themselves on top of a crane that manages waste daily at the largest landfill in Greece - a unique experience, since permission to film there is rarely given. Through inventive documentary making, viewers find themselves at the wheel of the bulldozer and become part of the waste volume that it manages daily. Then, they will find themselves inside a compost bin, where organic matter can be transformed into natural fertilizer, benefiting the earth. The documentary lasts 13’, an ideal duration for watching a 360-degree environment.
The director has also created a standalone virtual reality game. Viewers are transported to a timeless environment where, in a playful way, they activate various fruits, discovering information about their identity, food waste and its management.
The Peel Me experience also consists of a photography exhibition that introduces viewers to the subject. Director Maria Leonida has created small visual works from kitchen waste,. She transformed this material into enigmatic figures, raising questions about usefullness, beauty and modern food life style.

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