Food for Real Film Festival

A brand new FREE festival is growing in Liverpool!

Food for Real Film Festival hits a screen near you this Autumn in cinemas and a host of other diverse locations – community centres, online, on garden walls and in poly-tunnels!

Liverpool arts and health social enterprise, Squash Nutrition are curating Food for Real to share dynamic food practise from around the North-West and the globe. This gourmet gathering will explore, witness and savour the social, cultural and political impacts of the foods we eat. Food For Real Film Festival is free (some events require pre-booking) and takes place in venues across Liverpool from 21-25 November.

One of Food For Real Film Festival’s most unusual events is Poly-tunnel Vision – Britain’s first poly-tunnel cinema and the greenest movie theatre ever which takes place on Wed 21 November from 6-9pm. The Homeless Hostels Food Alliance will be hosting this first night of the film festival in their 125ft poly tunnel at Dutch Farm in Speke. The short films being screened celebrate groups and individuals who are taking growing for a sustainable future into their own hands – from seed saving for survival to urban growing at its funkiest. The Squash Nutrition team will be serving steaming cups of delicious soup and sharing tips on seed sprouting and seed saving on the night.

Another festival highlight is the Food for Real Women event at Blackburne House on Thursday 22 November – an evening that celebrates the complex and dynamic relationship between women, food and humour with a fantastic mixed bill of films and a tasty selection of lovingly crafted pies! The films shown will include Waitress by Adrienne Shelly, Sally Morris’ The Comedienne, Bobby Baker’s Kitchen Show and Semiotics of the Kitchen by Martha Rosler.

A new film by Labour MP for Wavertree Luciana Berger – Breadline Britain – will make its premiere at the festival, at Fact on the afternoon of Friday 23 November. The film charts the journey of a food donation through to a client at a food bank and questions why food banks are needed in 21st century Britain.

Another original event, Cycle-Thru Noodle Cinema, invites cyclists to put their best pedal forward and bring their lovely bicycle on down to the coolest cinema venue in the city (yes you will be able to cycle inside too!) on Sunday 25 November. Culturally critical masses will be meeting at Camp and Furnace where the unlikely union of bikes and noodles will be made beautiful. A cornucopia of weird and wonderful activities will accompany this afternoon’s feature including vintage short films about food and cycling, ‘Pimp my Bike’ cycle decor, bike check-ups with the Bike Doctors from Recycles, noodle-eating, breast-knitting and a feast of popcorn flavours to try.

tampopoThe main feature film of the afternoon is Tampopo, an off-beat comedy featuring several intersecting stories all related to food. Tsutomu Yamazaki plays Goro, a truck driver who helps a young widow named Tampopo improve her noodle restaurant. Whilst the early part of this event is family friendly, the main feature at 4.30 carries an 18 certificate and so under 18

‘s will not be permitted after this time. Hot, steaming bowls of noodle soup, drinks and cakes will be available to purchase (with free miso re-fills!)

Other great festival events include Back To The Future at the Village Farm Hub in Stockbridge Village which will showcase traditional land skills through film and workshops, Film Screening events at Fact including I am Love, Really Local Food, The Garden, Big Night and family fun with Ratatouille (see listings below for more info on all films), and L8 Honey Night at Toxteth’s John Archer Hall which celebrates local honey with food, workshops and films including The Secret Life of Bees and Einstein and the Honeybee.

For those missing the legendary Everyman Bistro, members of their food team will host a hands-on workshop, Cook and eat your own Everyman Bistro-style, seasonal lunch, while a fantastic cafe cinema experience Late Night Couscous Cafe with delicious food and a screening of the film Couscous (La graine at le mulet) takes place at Toxteth TV, both on 24 November.

Throughout the festival, Cinema Espresso will take place at Bold Street Coffee. Mini projectors, tiny screenings, big food ideas – Food for Real comes in all shapes and sizes! As they wait for their coffee, customers can project their choice of mini food film from the morsel movie menu or share their own mini culinary movie discoveries!

Rounding off this fantastic foodie film festival is Catch you later…Sustainable Fish Night at The Brink, with the film The End Of The Line, which follows the investigative reporter Charles Clover across the world as he confronts politicians and celebrity restaurateurs who exhibit little regard for the damage they are doing to the oceans, followed by a fascinating q&a with co-producer Claire Lewis.

A grassroots festival with an international reach, Food for Real aims to create an open, creative space where people from diverse food backgrounds and with diverse food interests can connect. It will be vibrant and interactive, provoking thought and discussion on the challenging food and agricultural issues of our time. Food for Real will be a flagship festival for Liverpool – and the first of its kind in England.

Food For Real Films Festival is funded by Liverpool Primary Care Trust as part of the Natural Choices environmental well-being programme and Liverpool City Council.

Look out for festival updates at:
www.foodforreal.co.uk
www.facebook.com/FoodForRealFilmFestival
on twitter – @FoodforRealFest

Liverpool Waterfront