The Eatable Film Festival is Back for its Second Year

Looking for something to do this weekend? The Eatable Film Festival is back for its second year and it’s the perfect excuse to cozy up to food and film. Vv Magazine’s Libby Roach has all the details. 

Movies and food go hand in hand – usually, it’s a greasy bag of popcorn perched between your knees but foodie and film fans will take this combo to new heights this weekend, with the second Eatable Film Festival taking over the small screen this weekend in Toronto.

Four movies are queued up at Royal Cinema on College Street, kicking off Saturday, October 22nd and running until Tuesday, October 25th. Each movie was carefully chosen to reflect the accompanying Chef’s creations and vice versa. Drink pairings are also part of the program, but thankfully not relegated to mere fountain drinks. Each movie is presented as if its own independent course, weaving the movie, the chef, and the food into one delicious experience.

Rocco Agostino is also hosting a (sold out) VIP dinner on Sunday, after a screening of his all-time favorite flick, Big Night.

We caught up with co-founder Rachel Low on the appetizing array of flicks and got the skinny on how you curate movies to go with a mouth-watering gourmet experience.

How would you describe the Eatable Film Festival, and what can festival-goers expect this year?

Rachel Low: The Eatable Film Festival gives audiences an opportunity to see great films while eating and drinking what they see on the screen. Eatable is all about creating an experience for audiences. Eatable curates a mix of classic films and first-run premieres and works with chefs to create food and drink inspired by the films. This year we are featuring Coffee and Cigarettes with Sam James Coffee Bar, Blackbird Baking Co. and Chocolates X Brandon Olsen; Big Night with Rocco Agostino/Pizzeria Libretto and James Santon/Enoteca Sociale; Need for Meat with Scott Vivian/Beast; and Portrait of a Garden with John Horne/Canoe.

This is the second year for Eatable. What was last year’s inaugural event like and how is this year different?

Rachel Low: Last year we had three events with different formats to see how audiences would respond. We had a fantastic response so we are back with more events this year. We really wanted to make Eatable accessible to everyone, so all events are $39 for screening, snack, and a drink.

How were the movies selected for the screenings?

Rachel Low: We are looking for a balance of classic or cult films that have a great food angle, and first-run films that are exciting or provocative. I went to the Berlin Film Festival earlier this year and the Eatable team thought Need for Meat and Portrait of a Garden were films Toronto audiences needed to see. We are also inspired by our connection to chefs and food. Coffee and Cigarettes, a wonderful, polarizing film, struck us as a fun and slightly tongue in cheek choice to bring together SJCB, Blackbird and Brandon Olsen, and Big Night is Rocco Agostino’s favorite film.

What would you consider to be the most stand-out/unique dish on offer during this year’s Eatable Film Festival?

Rachel Low: We are so excited by the dishes that chefs have come up with this year. There’s the mouth-watering mortadella hot dog on focaccia with mostardo and pistachios for Big Night; the perfect diner lunch box with Blackbird baguette sandwich, chips and pickle, and Brandon Olsen chocolates for Coffee and Cigarettes; a delicious meatball and fennel slaw for Need for Meat; and “Sweet Compost” with birch caramel apple, butterscotch cotton candy and chocolate twigs and rocks for Portrait of a Garden – a dessert dish that really takes things to the next level in terms of bringing haute cuisine into the cinema.

You can still snag tickets for the movies on their site, EatableFilms.com

RELATED LINK: New Toronto Restaurants: October 2016

What movies will you be seeing for the Eatable Film Fest? Let Vv Magazine know in the comments below, or tweet us @ViewtheVibe.