I wrote to the filmmaker, and he wrote me back!
justine espiritu <[email protected]> Mon, Feb 6, 2012 at 9:18 PM To: [email protected] Hi Bob!
I was at the 9pm showing of the film on Saturday. It takes me a
little bit of time to reflect and respond to films, so I didn't have
my thoughts together enough to voice them during the Q&A. I feel
compelled to email you because you seem genuinely interested in
feedback and what people's thoughts and concerns are.
I think your theme of empowerment and Hawaii residents taking the
issue of food into our own hands was conveyed really well with the
people/organizations your film focused on. I really liked your film's
rejection of the narrative that junk food is 'kid food' and how the
school gardens are proving kids will eat and love good, fresh,
nutritious food and are capable of appreciating what it means to grow
it.
A missing link I see that I think your next film installment may be
able to help with depending on what you focus on is cultivating an
appreciation for our local farmers. Growing your own is one way to
reconnect with your food and change your perception and allow your
decision making in food purchasing to change; another is to support
your local farmers that have dedicated their life and career to
providing healthy, fresh food options for us all. I remember your
motto from the last ingredients film. "Know Your Farmer", and I think
that can be emphasized more by showcasing some of our local small
organic farmers. I think Ma'o Farms was a great choice to highlight
based on their status as a non-profit and amazingly successful on so
many levels internship program, and I think finding some other farms
and farmers to highlight in the next installment would be an effective
way to cultivate compassion and gratitude for farmers and motivate
viewers to get involved with our legislators as you suggested we do in
both Q&A sessions.
I've spent a lot of time on my friend Ted Nakamura's farm on the north
shore, Kawailoa Farm. He has 20 years experience farming in Hawaii,
14 years organically, and he has 4 acres that he farms alone on that
he leases from Kamehameha Schools. He is a wealth of wisdom and
knowledge on the struggles small farmers in Hawaii face like land and
resource issues, and working alongside him for just a couple hours has
changed the perspective my friend's and myself have on food and
enlightened us to how policies can support or hurt farmers. Featuring
Farmer's Markets where people can get to know their farmers and
support them directly I think would compell viewers to do so.
Just wanted to share my thoughts! I appreciate that you made this
film, I really enjoyed it and look forward to any additional
installments!
Justine
Robert A Bates <[email protected]> Tue, Feb 7, 2012 at 5:13 AM To: justine espiritu <[email protected]> Hey Justine,
Thanks for taking the time to write, you're very kind.
If this film has a glaring omission, it is the North Shore. If I had an endless stream of funding I would be out there now shooting, but alas I must make a living...
In response to the omission of farmers markets, I feel like that information is well established, already available. That said, Haleiwa is a great one for its denial of non-hawaii produce/products. Darn cool.
Thank you, God, and John Lennon,
Bob [Quoted text hidden]--
Robert A Bates