When: Friday 17th - Sunday 19th October

A Festival of Film – served with discussion, displays & great value food!

The Pierian Centre presents a weekend Festival of Film on 17th–19th October. The Meaning of Food looks at food from every angle – from the comic austerity of A Private Function to the sensuous abundance of Chocolat. Speakers, discussions and groaning plates complete this cultural banquet – a part of Share the Harvest: a celebration of Bristol's abundance of local food.
Vegetable Man by Archimboldo
Food is at the core of human culture – and goes far beyond mere survival. Food lives in the mouth, in the mind, and in the farmer’s hand. It lives in the memories of individuals and communities. Food can be a holy sacrament, or a commercial transaction – a key to ritual, to relationship and to politics. And hunger has been our almost constant companion since time began. The Meaning of Food explores the myriad ways that film handles food.

Four big feature films form the corner-stones of our festival. They look at the way food creates social divisions; at what happens when corporations monopolise our food; at what famine does to the soul of man; and at the liberating impact of sensuous indulgence. Around them is a programme of documentaries, discussions and delicious dishes & dainties!
Michael Palin puts his foot in it (A Private Function)
Alan Bennett’s award-winning script for A Private Function takes a comic look at the austerity, angst and appetites of a Yorkshire town enduring post-War rationing. Bravura performances from Michael Palin, Maggie Smith and Richard Griffiths present a world where the scarcity of meat drives law-abiding people to behave like pigs (7.30pm Friday). Soylent Green at 3.30pm on Saturday is a very different film with a darker take on food. This classic 1970s sci-fi explores the effect of over-population on the world’s resources. Shortages have given the giant Soylent Corporation a complete and unquestioned monopoly of food production – until Charlton Heston’s investigation of a seemingly motiveless murder reveals the truth behind the best-selling ‘Soylent Green’.

The Ox is an Oscar-nominated Swedish film about the moral and spiritual choices that hunger confronts us with. Liv Ullmann and Max von Sydow are among the cast in this true story of a family’s struggle to survive the 1860s famine. “There is a kind of biblical simplicity and inevitability to the story,” wrote the New York Times. “The individual images are sometimes stunning. The lighting often suggests the work of Vermeer." Sven Nykvist directs; and this rare screening is at 7.30pm on Saturday. In Chocolat Juliette Binoche offers irresistible temptation when she sets up a chocolate shop in a strait-laced French village. Johnny Depp and Judi Dench join her in a seductive and indulgent finale to the Festival at 7.30pm on Sunday.
Lemon Man by Archimboldo
The Ethical Food Debate at 2pm on Saturday is a chance both to celebrate World Food Day and to unravel the complexities of the current global food crisis. The theme is ‘The Good, the Bad & the Unpalatable’ – and our expert panel of Julian Oram (Head of Policy, World Development Movement), Jeremy Birch (Friends of the Earth), and Claire Milne (Transition Bristol) will address the issues from a local and global perspective. Entry is free – so do come along to find out the real roots of the current environmental, health and economic crises. The solution is in your hands – so your presence, your questions and your in-put are crucial!

Three documentaries on the Sunday almost form a mini-festival on their own. The day starts with coffee & pastries at 11.30am in preparation for a 12 noon screening of Four Tarts & A Tenor. Francesca Joseph’s delightful BBC Picture This film takes a wry look at the culinary demands that Pavarotti inserted into his contract for the Llangollen Eisteddfod. Entry is free – and the screening is introduced by Peter Symes, Series Editor and award-winning documentary film-maker. Things get more serious on Sunday afternoon. A Latin American lunch from 1.30pm heralds our screening at 3pm of the inspiring film The Power of Community: How Cuba Survived Peak Oil. The collapse of the Soviet Union deprived Cuba of over half its oil imports overnight. Faith Morgan’s film examines how the country’s agriculture survived a shock that all of us will face very soon. Find out what Cuba’s development of low-energy alternatives can teach the oil-addicted West! Then at 6pm the focus moves from the global to the local with Discovering Levels’ Best – a documentary by Somerset Food Links. This portrait of the Somerset Levels & Moors introduces both a unique landscape and the farmers, growers and producers of its distinctive food and drink. The screening is introduced by Elaine Spencer-White, and is followed by a mouth-watering spread of locally-produced delicacies!

Kids’ Morning from 10.30–12.30 on Saturday is a feast of cartoons and comedies about food – informative and fiercely funny. Hands-on foody activities from All About Food accompany the screenings to help kids understand where food comes from and what goes into it. And throughout the weekend our Prize Raffle is a chance to win a Hamper-full of good things. Bart Spices, La Ruca, Pukka Teas, the Better Food Company and stall-holders from the Bristol Farmers Market have each donated a groaning Hamper of gourmet grub. Buy a ticket to support the Festival and maybe scoop one of the most palatable prizes around! Each of our major feature films is accompanied by a meal of appropriate food – from a 1940’s rationing Banquet for A Private Function to a Scandinavian feast for our screening of The Ox. And there are no prizes at all for guessing what’s on the menu for our finale of Chocolat!
Pillars of the Community (A Private Function)
The Meaning of Food is supported by Pukka Teas, La Ruca, Averys, Bart Spices, Bristol Farmers Market and the Better Food Company – Bristol-based producers of fine food and drink. All About Food is providing kids’ activities on the Saturday and delicious chocolate Brownies on the Sunday, washed down with Pukka’s “Pleasure Tea”. The Ethical Food Debate is organised by Bristol Food Hub and Fair Trade Network – and the festival is part of Share the Harvest: a celebration of Bristol's abundance of local food. Visit www.sharetheharvest.co.uk to find out about more food events happening.

A full Programme with times is attached – or is available from 0117 924 4512 or info@pieriancentre.com. Prices are £4.50 for evening screenings; £3.50 for daytimes; and £2 for children. Special low income rates are available on request. The Pierian Centre is at 27 Portland Square, St Pauls, Bristol BS2 8SA (www.pieriancentre.com). Ample parking is available in the Square.