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Jiro Dreams of Sushi
Jiro Dreams of Sushi

The world’s largest culinary film festival, Devour! The Food Film Fest (Devour!) will present 74 food-and beverage-focused films from 21 countries, running the gamut from eye-opening feature length documentaries to quirky and engaging short flicks at the eighth edition.  Devour’s 2018 programming centers around this year’s overall theme of “The Power of Food and Film to Transform”.

“Film is a powerful medium that can help shine a spotlight on important issues, spark conversations, inspire others and promote meaningful change,” said Devour! Managing Director Lia Rinaldo. “We are experiencing a cultural shift where many of us are rejecting the status quo and looking to transform our lives. As a result, the culinary industry, among others, is going through this period of upheaval and transition, which we strived to reflect in this year’s slate of inspiring and impactful films that explore topics from food waste, sustainability, food security, environmental impact, gender equality, discrimination and politics, to name a few.”

The 2018 lineup includes 28 thought-provoking feature films including eOne’s Jiro Dreams of Sushi about 85-year-old sushi chef Jiro Ono, the proprietor of a three-star Michelin sushi restaurant inauspiciously located in a Tokyo subway station. The film will open the festival on Wednesday, October 24 and was personally selected by 2018 Festival Guest Curator Sam Kass, the former White House Chef for the Obama family and a healthy food activist. Each year, the festival’s opening guest presents their favorite food film of all time; the only retro title in the program.

Film highlights include the Thursday night gala film André – The Voice of Wine about André Tchelistchef, the godfather of California winemaking, directed by his nephew Mark Tchelistchef who will be in attendance; the Canadian premiere of returning filmmaker Gab Taraboulsy’s feature length biopic Funke, chronicling Chef Evan Funke as he sets up one of the hottest restaurants in Los Angeles, Felix Trattoria; the world premiere of the Canadian documentary Six Primrose, which chronicles the dramatic impact of accessing healthy food on the community of Dartmouth, NS; and the inspiring documentary Charged: The Eduardo Garcia Story, chronicling Chef Eduardo’s recovery following a freak accident. Chef Eduardo Garcia is attending the Festival as a featured chef and will participate in the Celebrity Chef Dinner on Friday, October 26, alongside other top chefs still to be announced.

Devour! will screen several films that document the success of women and the challenges they face in the male-dominated culinary industry. A Fine Line, directed by Joanna James, explores why only six per cent of head chefs and restaurant owners are women and documents the rise of some of the most celebrated women in the industry including the World’s Best Female Chef and Devour! alumna Dominique Crenn and Emmy Award-winning TV Host Lidia Bastianich. Canadian Director Maya Gallus’ The Heat: A Kitchen (R)evolution profiles seven female chefs facing daunting professional obstacles, harassment and toxic environments. Thirty-six per cent of this year’s film program is directed by women.

The Festival will close with a feature drama from prominent Nova Scotia director Thom Fitzgerald. Splinters is an intimate drama about sexual identity, family and life in small-town Nova Scotia, filmed on an apple farm in the Annapolis Valley, mere minutes from the film fest’s location. This year’s program marks the festival’s largest program of Canadian content on screen at 32 percent of the films, including 17 per cent from Atlantic Canada.

Devour! will showcase 45 short films, including David Ma’s Hollywood-inspired recipe video series filmed in the aesthetic style of famous filmmakers: What if Alfonso Cuaron Made Pancakes?, What if Michael Bay Made Waffles?, What If Quentin Tarantino Made Spaghetti & Meatballs and What If Wes Anderson Made S’mores?. Additional programming includes six visually stunning films about Nova Scotia from the award-winning team behind the The Perennial Plate, and selections from returning filmmaker Kevin Kossowan’s James Beard Award Nominated Canadian series, From the Wild: Bay of Fundy and From the Wild: Devour! Edition.

A highlight of the festival program is the return of the Devour Road Show Celebrity Chef Dinner on Saturday, October 27, where a special program of five short films will be screened right in the barrel cellar of Lightfoot & Wolfville Winery, with chefs pulling their inspiration for their dishes right from the films.

All films are eligible for the Devour! Golden Tine Awards in five categories–Best Short Documentary, Best Short Drama, Best Feature Documentary, Best Feature Drama and Best Animation–chosen by an esteemed jury: Anita Stewart (Founder of Food Day Canada), Greg Rubidge (Syndicado Film Sales) and Dan Clapson (Eat North). The Awards Brunch will take place on Sunday, October 28 at Lightfoot & Wolfville Winery.

The 2018 Festival film screenings are:

FEATURE-LENGTH FILMS

All the Time in the World Suzanne Crocker | Canada

THURSDAY NIGHT GALA SCREENING: André – The Voice of Wine Mark Tchelistcheff | USA/Germany

As Needed (Quanto Basta) Francesco Falaschi | Italy/Brazil

The BBQ Stephen Amis | Australia

FRIDAY NIGHT SPOTLIGHT GALA SCREENING: Charged: The Eduardo Garcia Story Phillip Baribeau | USA

Chef Flynn Cameron Yates | USA

Constructing Albert Laura Collado & Jim Loomis | Spain/Estonia

The Devil We Know Stephanie Soechtig & Jeremy Seifert | USA

The Empire of Red Gold Xavier Deleu & Jean-Baptiste Malet | France

A Fine Line Joanna James | USA

From Seed to Seed Katharina Stieffenhofer | Canada

Funke Gab Taraboulsy | USA/Italy

The Heat: A Kitchen (R)evolution Maya Gallus | Canada

OPENING NIGHT GALA SCREENING: Jiro Dreams of Sushi David Gelb | USA

Knife Skills Thomas Lennon | USA

Once Again Kanwal Sethi | Germany/India/Austria

Our Blood is Wine Emily Railsback | USA

A Polar Year (Une année polaire) Samuel Collardy | France

Scotch: A Golden Dream Andrew Peat | Taiwan/Scotland

Secret Ingredient Gjorce Stavreski | Macedonia

The Silver Branch Katrina Costello | Ireland

Six Primrose True Faux Films | Canada

Soufra Thomas Morgan | USA

CLOSING NIGHT GALA SCREENING: Splinters Thom Fitzgerald | Canada

The Superfood Chain Ann Shin | Canada

Tazzeka Jean-Phillipe Gaud | France

There is No Place Like Home (A Casa Tutti Bene) Gabriele Muccino | Italy

ULAM: Main Dish Alexandra Cuerdo | USA

SHORT FILMS

America: The Ice Cream Truck The Perennial Plate | USA

Bao Domee Shi | USA

The Best Place to Tell Stories Kevin Kossowan | Canada

The Birth of Bread Matthew Pendergast | UK

The Bite House The Perennial Plate | Canada

Borscht & Fresh Bread Sarah Gignac | Canada

A Brief History of Acadians in Nova Scotia (and their food) The Perennial Plate | Canada

A Butcher’s Heart Wouter Jansen | Netherlands

Café de Temporada Maria Luisa Santos | USA

Chapters of Food: Mole is Mexico Barbara Anastacio | Mexico

Conad Compilation Stef Viaene | Italy

The Common Chameleon Tomer Eshed | Germany

Corky Ty Primosch | USA

Cosmic Connection James Boo | USA

Cups & Robbers Jim Simone | USA

Embrace the Blue Douglas Keir Blackmore | Canada

The Foolish Side of Food Luca Goudon | Italy

From the Wild: Bay of Fundy Kevin Kossowan | Canada

From the Wild: Devour! Edition Kevin Kossowan | Canada

Gefilte Rachel Fleit | USA

The Grey Zone Brian Gersten | USA

How Mr and Mrs Gock Saved the Kumara Felicity Morgan-Rhind | New Zealand

Is You Is My Baby Kelly Perine & Bry Sanders | Canada/USA

John Bil Shane Pendergast | Canada

Lightfoot & Wolfville The Perennial Plate | Canada

Make Love: Bar Ape James Reid | Canada

Mitsuharu Tsumura of Maido Jim Kane | Peru

Nova Scotia The Perennial Plate | Canada

On the Shores of This Bay The Perennial Plate | Canada

Proud to be Prairie James Reid | Canada

Pulled Strings Vicki Chau | Canada

Red Velvet Mahmoud Samir & Youssef Mahmoud | Egypt

A Rising Tide The Perennial Plate | Canada

Soul of a Nosh James Boo | USA

Style Points James Boo | USA

Thin Skinned Aaron Tilley | UK

Tibor Petra O’Toole | Canada

Tungrus Rishi Chandna | India

Virgilio and Malena Martinez Jim Kane | Peru

What If Alfonso Cuaron Made Pancakes? David Ma | USA

What If Michael Bay Made Waffles? David Ma | USA

What If Quentin Tarantino Made Spaghetti & Meatballs? David Ma | USA

What If Wes Anderson Made S’mores? David Ma | USA

Wild Mushroom and Venison with Jon Parry Jamie Orlando Smith | UK

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