(WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass.) – Fresh Fest, a food- and farm-themed film festival, featuring four films documenting effort at creating and maintaining a sustainable food supply, takes place at Images Cinema on Saturday, March 9, and Sunday, March 10, 2013. The free screenings include Growing Hope Against Hunger on Saturday, March 9, at 10:30 a.m.; Edible City, on Saturday, March 9 at 1 p.m.; More Than Honey, on Saturday, March 9 at 4:30 p.m.; and A Home Movie: Rhodes Family Documentary, on Sunday, March 10, at 4 p.m. Each film will feature a local guest speaker. The festival is a co-presentation of Williams College’s Sustainable Food & Agricultural Program and Images Cinema.
Starring Brad Paisley, Kimberly Williams-Paisely and characters from Sesame Street, Growing Hope Against Hunger speaks to both children and adults on the importance of community. In this special episode of Sesame Street, the show’s main puppet characters meet a new friend Lily, whose family has an ongoing struggle with hunger. They come to understand that their simple actions can make a world of difference. The documentary stories that follow present children’s perspectives on food insecurity and illuminate the impact hunger has on families. Ali Benjamin, who served as researcher, casting director, and story consultant for the documentary portion, will be the guest speaker.
Edible City documents a broad spectrum of activists, organizations, and inspired citizens who challenge the paradigm of the current food system. The movie digs deep into their unique perspectives and transformative work — from edible education to grassroots activism to building local economies — and shows how everyone can get involved in transforming the food system. Aleisha and Brian Gibbons of Berkshire Organics will be the guest speakers. Wild Oats soup will also be available on a first-come, first-served basis.
The third film, More Than Honey, deals with an unexplained global phenomenon: the death of millions of honeybee colonies. While a complete understanding of its causes are yet to be determined, it is clear that the problem is much larger than a few dead insects, and that there is more at stake than just a bit of honey. Searching for answers, the film features a wide array of people living with and relying on honeybees, including almond growers in California, pollen dealers in China, and a neuroscientist investigating bee brains in Berlin. More Than Honey offers fascinating insight into the beehive as well as our relationship with nature. Tony Pisano and Alethea Morrison of the Northern Berkshire Beekeepers Association will be the guest speakers. The movie is in German with subtitles in English.
A Home Movie, the final film for the festival, is a documentary by local filmmaker Better Craig on Williamstown farm history, as told by the Rhodes family of South Williamstown. Craig and her husband, Charles Portz, have owned the Rhodes family farmhouse since 1979. Many of the Rhodes family still lives on part of what had been a 300-acre dairy farm. Craig interviewed many family members, including Lillian Rhodes, who married Robert Rhodes in 1921 and lived in the farmhouse until 1972. Robert’s parents bought the farm in 1875. The guest speaker will be filmmaker Better Craig. A reception featuring Cricket Creek artisanal cheese and bread by Philippe Besnard will follow.