Mina's Dish

Reel Sustainable

Whole Foods Market celebrates Earth Month with nationwide film festival

Whole Foods Market’s motto is "Whole Foods, Whole People, Whole Planet." From the Global Animal Partnership animal welfare rating system, to every item stocked in produce and on the shelves, Whole Foods Marketing Specialist Maria Bustamante tells that there’s always something going on to improve the store and inform the community.

Whole Foods Market’s Do Something Reel Film Festival is another expression of this philosophy. Albuquerque is one of 70 locations across the country screening six films, each focusing on food issues and people who strive to make a difference. Screenings will take place at the KiMo Theatre in Albuquerque and at the Center for Contemporary Arts in Santa Fe. (See the Food Calendar for screening times.)

The company hopes to raise awareness of food and environment issues, Whole Foods Market co-CEO Walter Robb said in a statement, as well as support filmmakers with projects that “inspire people to question the impact our choices have on our health, body and environment."

Whole Foods is creating a grant program in the green film genre. A portion of all tickets sales ($8 per film in Albuquerque, $9.50 in Santa Fe) will feed into a grant to filmmakers who are at varying stages of development—from conception through completion. The series will also feature filmmaker discussions, either in person or via Skype.

The six films chosen for the inaugural film festival cover a range of topics. Bag It (bagitmovie.com) examines America’s over-reliance on plastics. Lunch Line (lunchlinefilm.com) follows kids fighting for sensible school meal programs from a tough Chicago neighborhood all the way to the White House. On Coal River (oncoalriver.com) details the environmental and human costs of coal and strip-mining in a West Virginia community. PLANEAT (planeat.tv) makes a case for plant-based diets with scientists, farmers and chefs. In Urban Roots (urbanrootsamerica.com), Detroiters work to revive their ailing city through inner-city agriculture. And Vanishing of the Bees (vanishingbees.com) links disappearing bees to industrial farming.

During the Festival, Whole Foods will also stream the film Dig It on dosomethingreel.com on Earth Day, April 22. This film follows Pearl Jam participating in tree-planting and beautification efforts in New York City, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Complete schedules, ticket information and details about the grant program are at dosomethingreel.com.