I wanna be in pictures! Confessions of a bag.

You’ve seen me on this website (www.abagslife.com) and on buttons, ads and magnets. I’m the free plastic bag with enough chutzpah to tell you: “Don’t treat me like trash” and “Gimme a second chance.”

Now for my next act: I wanna be in pictures.

So if you’re a high school student in Virginia, get out your video camera and make my dreams come true. You could win some cash if you’ve got the best and most creative clip.

Reuse me. Recycle me. Repurpose me. And show others how it’s done in one to two minutes.

About the Contest

Sponsored by a coalition of recycling partners, including Keep Virginia Beautiful and HR Clean, A Bag’s Life video contest entries must be submitted by March 1, 2011 at 5 p.m. The assignment is to create a positive, one-to-two-minute-long video featuring original content, promoting the reuse and recycling of plastic shopping bags like those found in grocery and home improvement stores.

Entries should be submitted at www.abagslife.com/VA and are being accepted in two categories:  Reuse and Recycling.

For “Reuse,” entries should depict fun, positive ways plastic bags can be reused. For example, ideas could include: reusing bags as a rain hat, lunch bag, wet bathing suit tote, suitcase shampoo wrapper, shoe saver, cast protector or poop picker-upper.

“Recycling” entries should be educational in nature and showcase the positive ways you remember to recycle your bags, or how you remind others to recycle theirs.  When recycled, we bags can go on to have great second lives as low-maintenance fencing, decking, building and construction products and of course, new bags.

Judges will then select up to 10 finalists in each category. On March 9, 2011, those finalist videos will be posted online and voting begins! Online voting ends at 5 p.m. on April 3, 2011, and winners will be announced April 8, 2011.

Use your imagination to make videos that are fun and engaging. The reuse and recycle message doesn’t need to be a lecture. There are lots of creative high school students out there — so make me laugh and learn.

Are your creative juices running?  Great!  Before you get started, take some time to learn more about how versatile plastic bags can be – and how easy it can be to take them back to participating stores for recycling.

The grand-prize winner in each category will receive $1,000, second place $500 and third place $300. So get shooting and upload your video before the March 1 deadline.

For more information, go to my tips and rules or email me at [email protected]