Download a copy of the press release here
Food documentary takes unique look at organic farming and how the industry is being shaped as demand grows
NEW YORK, NY – What’s Organic About Organic?, winner of the prestigious Our Planet award at the Los Angeles Going Green Film Festival, will kick off its national tour with a week-long premiere at the HERE Theater in New York City from June 21st to 27th. Local Director, Shelley Rogers, is making her filmmaking debut with a documentary that she believes is “a call to action for a public that is increasingly concerned about their food choices.” The premiere will also serve as the launch of the film’s Screen & Green campaign, which aims to partner with local non-profit organizations nation-wide and encourage the audience to take the next step beyond watching the film and become an engaged participant in the organic food movement.
With the support of co-host organizations such as Just Food, GrowNYC and NOFA-NY, Rogers will hold post-screening panel discussions each evening of the premiere to provide local perspective and context for the film’s message. Guest speakers will include: Joan Gussow, Professor Emerita of Nutrition Education at Columbia University, Marion Nestle of New York University and Jacquie Berger, Executive Director of Just Food along with many other thought leaders in the agricultural and food world. Characters from the film will also be in attendance to discuss their experiences.
What’s Organic About Organic? dives into the challenges that arise when a grassroots agricultural movement evolves into a booming international market and reveals what’s at stake in creating and maintaining meaningful standards for organic production. As more organic products crowd supermarket shelves, citizens are left to question what it really means to be ‘organic.’ “What’s Organic About Organic? takes the discussion beyond eco-label shopping,” said Rogers. “This film will show audiences that the decisions they make in the grocery store and the policies set by our government should not be just about personal preference, but they should embody a means of supporting an agricultural system that produces healthy food, develops market opportunities for regional food systems, and safeguards our environment for future generations.”
“We all can be part of the answer to the world’s problems,” said Florida Organic Growers’ Executive Director and co-producer of the film, Marty Mesh. “We want to see this film be a piece of that solution by helping people understand that the choices they make are important.”
The film’s premiere week will also include festivities for the Summer Solstice on June 21st and a post-screening fundraising party for NOFA-NY on June 25th at HERE Theater’s adjoining café, Dom Hudson Square.
Screening Dates: June 21 – 27, 2010
Time: 7:00pm / additional matinee screening at 2:00pm on June 26th & 27th
Location: HERE Theater, 145 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY, 10013
For more information and a full list of post-screening panelists, please contact Stephanie@whatsorganicmovie.com or visit http://ytorf.com/whatsorganicmovie.com/
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Post-Screening Schedule of Panelists
Monday, June 21 – 7pm screening
Jacquie Berger, Executive Director, Just Food
Hilary Baum, Co-Founder of Food Systems NYC and Founder, Baum Forum
Tuesday, June 22 – 7pm screening
Paul Mankiewicz, Executive Director, Gaia Institute
Karen Washington, President, NYC Community Gardens Coalition
Maria-Paolo Sutto, Director, Urban Design Lab of Columbia’s Earth Institute
Wednesday, June 23 – 7pm screening
Michael Horowitz, Director, Greenmarket Program, GrowNYC
David Hughes, Operations Manager, Greenmarket Program, GrowNYC
Bob Lewis, US Department of Agriculture and Markets
Thursday, June 24 – 7pm screening
Elizabeth Meltz, Director of Sustainability, Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group
Patrick Martins, Co-Founder, Heritage Foods
Jimmy Carbone, Owner, Jimmy’s 43
Carlos Suarez, Owner and Head Chef, Bobo Restaurant
Ian Marvey, Co-Founder & Executive Director, Added Value
Friday, June 25 – 7pm screening
Scott Chaskey, President, NOFA-NY
Peter Hoffman, Chef, Back Forty and Savoy, Member of Chef’s Collaborative
Adriana Velez, Brooklyn Food Coalition
Saturday, June 26 – 2pm matinée
Christine Datz-Romero, Founder & Director, LES Ecology Center
Saturday, June 26 – 7pm screening
Joan Gussow, Professor Emerita of Nutrition Education, Columbia University
John Gorzynski, Farmer/Owner, Ornery Farm and “character” in WOAO?
Claudia Keel, Director, Dr. Weston Price Foundation
Sunday, June 27 – 2pm matinée
Annie Novak, farmer and founder of Growing Chefs
Yonnette Fleming, Urban Gardener
Sunday, June 27 – 7pm screening
Marion Nestle, Professor of Nutrition, New York University
Anne Saxelby, Owner, Saxelby Cheesemongers
Urvashi Rangan, Environmental Health Scientist, Consumer’s Union and “character” in WOAO?
Dennis Derryk, Founder, Corbin Hill Farm
Marty Mesh, Executive Director, Florida Organic Growers and Co-producer, WOAO?