Food and drink is a necessity of life, right? We are what we eat – mentally, physically, emotionally, and even spiritually. We live in a world of extremes with food starvation on one side to gluttony on the other. And yet there are those who live with abundance at their fingertips and the means to healthy and delicious meals yet chose to feast on empty nutrition. Small things can and do bring joy. Foodie loves both the simplicity and complexity of food and drink, respects food, eats mindfully, give thanks for every bite or sip, curious to know how food is prepared, preserved, and planted, always on the lookout to learn, grow, share, and serve.

Ambrosia Food & Drink Film Festival solely dedicated to films focused on food and drink, as well as those films, where food and drink is an important part of the synopsis (or may be for one memorable scene): short and feature films, animation, documentary, web series, music video, how-to cooking and recipe video and commercials with, or about food/drink, cuisine, cooking, baking, restaurants, cafes, pubs, eating, drinking, tasting and/or meals, wine, tea, coffee and soft drinks, delicious dishes from upmarket restaurant with famous chef, fast food, vegetarian food, healthy food, simple food and street food.

Program

1 Brice Blanloeil «8102 ARIM» (France)

A private is sent to La Teste, a small town in south of France where The whole city seems to have disappeared overnight.

2 Hieu Gray «QUẬN 13» (USA)

Paris is home to one of the largest and oldest Vietnamese communities in the world; however, little has been documented about the Vietnamese diaspora in Paris. Filmmaker Hieu Gray aims to change that in her new food documentary “Quận 13” which refers to the Vietnamese name for Paris’ 13th arrondissment or district, home to the city’s Asian Quarter. The 13th may be the starting point, but Gray’s journey takes her all over Paris and into the kitchens of the Vietnamese keeping their cultural identity alive through food.

3 Toby Wulff «Hot Dog Berlin — Wake Up Your Inner American!» (Germany)

"Wake up your inner American" — In these times this slogan seems more important today then ever before. This no-budget-commercial works only with stereotypes and prejudices which can be found in every multicultural society. A real "authentic" American hot dog stand in the heart of Berlin City. The stand is decorated in an absolutely exaggerated American way and the employee Tommy speaks only English… hand he speaks very fast. Not the ideal conditions for the three incoming customers from all over the world.

4 Dario Piana «La Ricetta Della Mamma» (Italy)

Mico Torre, a hitman, has to kill a witness before he can testify at a trial. He plans the assassination carefully and chooses the apartment of playboy Lanfranco Giussani as the perfect spot as its windows are right in front of the court entrance. Mico kidnaps Giussani while he is leaving for a trip and takes possession of the apartment, sure that he won’t be disturbed by the neighbours as they think it is empty. In the wait, he gets to know his hostage and, while he can forgive his many vices, he can’t accept the fact that he lies to his old mother, even ignoring her birthday, as well as the peppers she prepared for him with much love. Mico eats them all.

5 Leandro Miranda, Luiza Fecarotta «The Flour Man (Brazil)

“The Flour Man” tells the story of “Seu Bené” from Bragança (Pará). This film narrates a little about the tradition of flour production, which originated from the people of Amazon and endures to the present day.

6 Matija Jasarov «Leni Kravac — Pite ispod sača» (Slovenia)

It’s a music video which is mocking millenial’s constant obsessions with phones, social media, cooking sites and general unreliability.

7 Luigino Clarinda «DIEGO’s» (Netherlands)

Diego’s is an amazing burger bar in Rotterdam. And Chef Diego Buik has the title of the most expensive burger in the world!

8 Andreas Ksoll «Naughty» (United Kingdom)

Sometimes revenge is a dish best savoured hot! Once upon a time during a visit to a friend’s hospital bedside, hunger struck, and not wanting to see good food go to waste, one man ate another man’s sandwiches. At the time he thought nothing of the transgression. Years later he comes to discover that his friend has never forgotten the event and when their roles are reversed his guest arrives with a lot more than flowers.

9 Matic Borković «Levi Devžej» (Slovenia)

This is a story about tiny fragments. A story of tiny fragments of childhood, small gifts, minute memories. A story about details, small dreams of a big heart, the simplicity of small loves.

This story is about a humble small-town boy in love with tiny pleasures. It speaks of people who value modesty; those who can appreciate the little things because they know that from little things, big things grow.

10 Jeremy Germain «The Perfect Cup» (United States)

Everything that goes into making the perfect cup of coffee.

11 Roberto Serrini Italy «In Bocca: The world rarest, funkiest cookbooks» (USA)

20 rare cookbooks, 4 wild dishes, 2 best friends, 1 good thing to come out of the pandemic. Shot in one day just before quarantine, two friends use a series of rare Italian cookbooks to take a virtual trip to 4 fantastic regions of Italy without leaving their kitchen.

12 Marie Lormeau «Les Yeux Plus Gros que le Ventre» (Netherlands)

Alexia suffers from Bulimia. As she wanders through her life, the signs of her disease are clear but yet nobody notices them. As she introspects on her behaviour and never-ending hunger, her frustration and silence grow more and more intense.

13 Ivana Strajin «Homemade» (Canada)

Homemade seeks to tell stories about real home cooks across a diverse range of cultural backgrounds who let us in on their treasured family recipes. Each of the six episodes features a home cook and stories that centre around their recipe. We’ll learn about the origin of their dish, what makes it special, when it’s served, and of course, how to make it.

14 Joshua Parkhill «Egg on Your Face» (USA)

A documentary crew details the abated rise and evolution of a French Egg Chef.

15 Hartley Abdekalimi «Empire» (USA)

Back in the day, Joe designed a semi-popular coffee cup and he’s been coasting on it ever since. Now, this self-proclaimed Godfather of Coffee Cups is facing a world that is forgetting the classics.

16 Phillip Whiteman Romeo and Guilietta Ice-Cream (United Kingdom)

Romeo and Juliet’s story re-told with gelato.

17 Brian Yulo Ng «Ryori» (Japan)

Ryori (Cuisine in Japanese) is a Stop Motion Animated Film that depicts an Ojizo San Statue (guardian of the wayside) coming from within the forest to have a Shojin Ryori meal. Shojin Ryori is the traditional dining style of Buddhist Monks in Japan, the cuisine is made without meat, fish or other animal products. The film animates the process of cooking with elements of change in nature. So as to highlight the interconnectedness between cuisine and the environment. The components of a Shojin Ryori meal are based on the idea of balance. The rule of five is created between five colors and flavors in a meal; green, yellow, red, black and white as well as sweet, sour, salty, bitter and umami. This balance in color and flavor is believed to provide nutritional balance while also bringing the body into balance with the seasons.

18 Elea Clair «Check, Pleace! First Shift» (United States)

Julie is a French immigrant who just moved to NY to pursue her American dream and starts working in a small chaotic restaurant. It’s her first shift and nothing goes as expected.

19 Iacopo Patierno «Italia Sicilia Gela» (Italy)

Italy Sicily Gela is a 7 episodes web series that tells the relationship between the the towners with food. The protagonists of the episodes are citizens who believe in their city, in their land and who decide to invest in gastronomic activities, keeping a profound link with the culinary tradition of Gela.

20 Jacob Koch «Interplay» (United States)

An energetic short film pairing coffee and jazz.

21 Giorgio Arcelli Fontana «American Marriage» (USA)

Leonardo, an Italian immigrant who lives in New York, marries a Latina woman, Nikki, to obtain the American greencard. Through the comedy of it all Nikki and Leo fall in love “for real” but it looks like "Uncle Sam" will be the one to have the last laugh.

22 Mark Needle «Orthorexia» (United States)

Three coworkers compare eating habits.

23 Xavier Girard Lachaîne «Remember The Rain» (Canada)

First film on the vibrant Haitian culture in Montreal through music, food and culture. Montreal’s Haitian community now makes up the largest non-European ethnic group in Canada and the rise and influence of Haitian Canadians on Montreal’s creative culture is undeniable.

24 Javier Sobremazas «Juice of life» (Germany)

Juice of life (Succo di vite) is a documentary that portrays a whole year in Valli Unite, an alternative agricultural cooperative in North Italy. Through interviews with its protagonists and material in the field, the viewer will learn about the daily life of this cooperative, its philosophy, its history and its plans for the future.

25 Darrell Varga «Bread in the Bones» (Canada)

Stories of work and play, of love and loss…and bread. Bread has been at the center of human life and creativity for at least the last ten thousand years — it is in our bones and a witness to history. This essay documentary brings bread to the front of the line and explores its relation to politics, poetry and pleasure. The loaf of bread is the vehicle through which we explore stories of sex and death, immigration and refugees, social justice and the counter-culture, and of art, work and pleasure. Love it or hate it, everyone has a relationship with bread. This simple staple food is brought to life by the wild energy of yeast, perhaps our first companion animal, and is a metaphor of transformation that mirrors life itself. And it is the only metaphor you can eat. Shot in Canada, the US and throughout Europe, this is a fun journey into a subject that has come to have profound meaning in our strange times.

26 Alexis Agliano Sanborn «Nourishing Japan» (United States)

Embark on a delicious journey from farmer’s field to school classroom that celebrates how one country has reimagined school lunch and food education. At the heart of Japan’s 2005 Food Education Law are the incredible people whose daily work nourishes the next generation’s relationship to food, the earth, and one another.

27 Pavel Maximov «Robin Food» (Italy)

Robin Food is a non-profit and pay-as-you-feel restaurant with a mission: rescue, cook and serve food that otherwise would go to waste. The restaurant is saving fruit and vegetables from markets and farms to raise public awareness on issues of food waste, sustainability and climate change in the most tangible and delicious way possible: a tasty meal.

28 Sasha Paracels «16/8» (Russia)

Chained to a pipe in a dark room, a young woman must fight her way out and discover the dark secret to her imprisonment.