Farm Film Fest IV features films that focus on farms, farming, and farming issues.
The following films will be screened at Farm Film Fest IV.
Project Sprout
In 2007, three students at Monument Mountain Regional High School started Project Sprout, whose goal was to cultivate an organic farm on school grounds that would grow vegetables for the cafeterias of the district schools, be used as an educational tool, and build connections with the natural world for all students in the community. Over time, the project has far exceeded its goals and now donates produce to families in need, partners with sister projects in Uganda and Senegal, and serves as a model for other schools interested in starting their own gardens. 15 minutes
Filmmaker: Joseph Heck
(re)building a regional foodshed
Chatham was one of two national pilot sites for the Glynwood Center’s Keep Farming Program in 2005, and this film shows how the lessons learned in Chatham contributed to the growth and maturity of the program which has since taken root in many other communities. The film discusses the importance of land, community and infrastructure as components of a regional food system in the Hudson Valley. 11 minutes
Filmmaker: Ian Cheney
Locally Grown
This documentary highlighting the New Lebanon farmers’ market won the Chatham Film Club’s 2011 Young Filmmaker Contest and had its premiere at FilmColumbia 2011. 12 minutes
Filmmakers:
Kelt Wilksa, 16, lives in Old Chatham and attends Monument Mountain High School.
Isaak Van der Meulen, 16, lives in New Lebanon and attends Buxton School.
Up On The Farm
A meditation on urban green spaces and the post-industrial cityscape, this film explores Brooklyn Grange, a one-acre rooftop organic farm in New York City. Connecting the built and natural environments, this film documents an imaginative experiment in green urban redevelopment and takes a look at an attempt to transform the roof of a century-old former factory into a sustainable, pastoral haven. In keeping with the pastoral spirit, the film has no narration. 16 minutes
Filmmaker: Diane Nerwen
A video artist and media arts educator, Diane's work has been shown internationally, including screenings at the Berlin Film Festival, the New York Video Festival, the Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim Museum, and the Tate Modern.
Rambling Around with Joe Adee: A Visit with Hopeful Dawn Farm
This film follows Joe Adee as he visits Patty and Bud Goodwin at Hopeful Dawn Farm in Chatham. The accompanying music was written and performed by Joe. 15 minutes
Filmmaker:
Jessica Adee, 12, lives in Valatie and attends Chatham Middle School.
To Make a Farm
This feature-length documentary explores the lives of five young people who have decided to become small-scale farmers, despite having no background in this demanding profession. They face daily challenges and set-backs, but their optimism inspires hope for the future. Filmmaker Steve Suderman searches his own family history in farming to question whether the mistakes of the past can be avoided this time around. 80 minutes
To Make a Farm recently had its premiere at the Vancouver International Film Festival and is on the program at the upcoming Victoria Film Festival, Powell River Film Festival and Available Light Film Festival in Canada. The film’s “official” U.S. premiere will occur at the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival in late February, but we’ll have it first at the Crandell.
Filmmaker: Steve Suderman
Steve grew up on a farm in western Canada. He studied Mathematics and Computer Science and taught high school before pursuing filmmaking in 2002. His first documentary, Over Land, premiered at Les Rencontres Internationales du Documentaire de Montreal (RIDM) in 2008. To Make a Farm is his second documentary.