Guide: A Culinary Documentary(2020)

Super Size Me(en)

Morgan Spurlock subjects himself to a diet based only on McDonald's fast food three times a day for thirty days without exercising to try to prove why so many Americans are fat or obese. He submits himself to a complete check-up by three doctors, comparing his weight along the way, resulting in a scary conclusion.

Food Coop(en)

In the middle of an economic crisis, in the shadow of Wall Street, an institution that represents a less well-known American tradition is booming. The Park Slope Food Coop: a cooperative supermarket where all 16,000 members work 3 hours per months to earn the right to buy the best food in New York at incredibly low prices. The success of this cooperative is a bad new for capitalism and aggro-alimentary business, and an opportunity to change the food production and distribution systems. We will see what has become of the Park Slope Food Coop, now a well-rooted institution in the heart of Brooklyn: the way it functions, its hundreds of rules, the diversity and eccentricity of its members. We'll see how the culture that has been created at the coop gives its members daily visceral lessons in democracy, how this could represent a potential change in mentality for Americans faced with increasingly difficult economic times.

King Corn(en)

King Corn is a fun and crusading journey into the digestive tract of our fast food nation where one ultra-industrial, pesticide-laden, heavily-subsidized commodity dominates the food pyramid from top to bottom – corn. Fueled by curiosity and a dash of naiveté, two college buddies return to their ancestral home of Greene, Iowa to figure out how a modest kernel conquered America. With the help of some real farmers, oodles of fertilizer and government aide, and some genetically modified seeds, the friends manage to grow one acre of corn. Along the way, they unlock the hilarious absurdities and scary but hidden truths about America’s modern food system in this engrossing and eye-opening documentary.

Hungry(en)

Almost half of the residents in the South Bronx live below the poverty level. One in four do not have access to quality food. Anita, among others, makes difficult choices to provide for her family. She depends on the local food pantry to make ends meet.

Fed Up(en)

Fed Up blows the lid off everything we thought we knew about food and weight loss, revealing a 30-year campaign by the food industry, aided by the U.S. government, to mislead and confuse the American public, resulting in one of the largest health epidemics in history.

Ovacik(tr)

Unknown to the rest of the world, Ovacik is a place where production meets solidarity and hope with almost no budget. Its mayor is the first mayor ever elected from the Turkish Communist Party. The film follows the mayor and the residents who work to develop a sustainable economy by promoting community-based agriculture. The story of Ovacik sets an example for agricultural towns around Turkey.

Girls of Hope(en)

In Turkey far too many women are still unable to read and write, and all they see in their life span is being forced into early marriage and relegation to the home, where they look after extended families and more children than they can feed. The girls are portrayed in their homes, together with the strongest supporters of their emancipation through education: their mothers. Girls of Hope portrays five girls who struggle for their education and, despite all the difficulties, try to hold on to their hope for a better future.

Cheap Food(fr)

Industrial food production has provided the public with an abundance of food at very low prices. But with obesity and diabetes at record levels in Europe, there is clearly a problem with the food we eat. This documentary puts the spotlight on the agri-food industry and reveals how low-cost ultra-processed foods are really made.

Bananas!*(en)

Juan “Accidentes” Dominguez is on his biggest case ever. On behalf of twelve Nicaraguan banana workers he is tackling Dole Food in a ground-breaking legal battle for their use of a banned pesticide that was known by the company to cause sterility. Can he beat the giant, or will the corporation get away with it?

Killer at Large(en)

Obesity rates in the United States have reached epidemic proportions in recent years. Killer at Large shows how little is being done and more importantly, what can be done to reverse it. Killer at Large also explores the human element of the problem with portions of the film that follow a 12-year old girl who has a controversial liposuction procedure to fix her weight gain and a number of others suffering from obesity, including filmmaker Neil Labute.

Les Alimenteurs(fr)

They are everywhere. At home, in the canteen, in restaurants, processed foods fill our plates. Overcome by obesity, diabetes, heart disease, taste dulled by the easy and artificial flavors of gastronomy, the population no longer has a choice. For fifty years, the agri-food industry has been at our table. And she stuffs herself. Indulgence or complacency with regard to this takeover, the authorities only exercise limited and a posteriori control over this mountain of foodstuffs that are too fatty, too sweet, too salty. Unlike the good recipes of our grandmothers, inspection in the back kitchens of these feeders.

The Dark Side of Chocolate(en)

A team of journalists investigate how human trafficking and child labor in the Ivory Coast fuels the worldwide chocolate industry. The crew interview both proponents and opponents of these alleged practices, and use hidden camera techniques to delve into the gritty world of cocoa plantations.

That Sugar Film(en)

One man's journey to discover the bitter truth about sugar. Damon Gameau embarks on a unique experiment to document the effects of a high sugar diet on a healthy body, consuming only foods that are commonly perceived as 'healthy'. Through this entertaining and informative journey, Damon highlights some of the issues that plague the sugar industry, and where sugar lurks on supermarket shelves.

Thé mania(fr)

Food, Inc.(en)

Documentary filmmaker Robert Kenner examines how mammoth corporations have taken over all aspects of the food chain in the United States, from the farms where our food is grown to the chain restaurants and supermarkets where it's sold. Narrated by author and activist Eric Schlosser, the film features interviews with average Americans about their dietary habits, commentary from food experts like Michael Pollan and unsettling footage shot inside large-scale animal processing plants.

Fraude alimentaire, un crime organisé ?(fr)

All food can be adulterated. More discreet than a drug cartel, more elusive than arms dealers, criminals have taken over food. Olive oil, fish, meat, spices, no department escapes their juicy traffic. A jackpot estimated in Europe at 30 billion euros enriches a new kind of mafia every year. Organized crime is selling altered products in restaurants, supermarkets and all food shops in the European Union. Their secret is to replace an ingredient with a cheaper one. Who are these new traffickers? What are their methods of operation?

Irresistible: Why We Can't Stop Eating(en)

Chris van Tulleken takes a personal view at why ultra-processed foods are so irresistible and how they have come to dominate food culture.

The Jungle(en)

A modern-day take on Upton Sinclair's shocking 1906 novel, The Jungle unravels centuries of greed and exploitation in America’s meat industry and reveals how indigenous knowledge may hold the key to creating an equitable food system for both people and the planet. Featuring former New York Times food columnist Mark Bittman, the film chronicles generations of profit-driven conglomerates manipulating our food system, destroying ecosystems, and exacerbating climate change. Industry insiders detail the roadmap for today’s corporate dominance. Simultaneously, slaughterhouse laborers fight for justice against relentless worker abuse. Others, like Paige and Derrick Jackson, have lost trust in the system, radically changing their lives to raise their own food. Committed to rebuilding our perpetually broken meat industry, Minnesota farmer Reginaldo Haslett-Marroquin begins to graze his chickens using an indigenous technique. The effects are a revelation.

The Poison Squad(en)

The story of government chemist Dr. Harvey Wiley who, determined to banish dangerous substances from dinner tables, took on the powerful food manufacturers and their allies.

Christspiracy(en)

The moral dimension of humanity's interaction with nonhuman animals and the industries that profit from their exploitation, as informed by world religions. A historical explanation of how the current global situation came to be.