Category Archives: Uncategorized

10.21.22
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Vancouver, BC’s Dave Letford Has Big Plans for Devour! Food Film Fest and The Future of Food

Dave Letford is a chef based in Vancouver. British Columbia, who quite the name for himself in this city. Not only has he worked at some great places to earn his cred, namely Hawsworth where he started as a sous chef, but also is now working as a culinary instructor at Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts. He’s proud to share his knowledge to the new generation of cooks.

Next week, he’ll be taking a lineup of his best talents to Devour! The Food Film Fest, which runs Oct 24-30 in Wolfville, Nova Scotia. They’ll be part of a culinary school event where they’ll be serving up some tasty foraged meals. He’ll be the facilitator.

Although not verified, his team is considering a faux pulled pork sandwich served on a black-eyed pea bun. They’ll also be contemplating another dish with oysters from a nearby bay, and as for what mushroom magic they’ll fashion hasn’t been approved. They thought about bringing the Pacific Northwest to the East Coast, but know better. Since the theme concerns the future of food, namely staying green, they plan on using what’s local to the region.

His role at this event goes beyond teaching the next group of culinary artists to innovate not only from their hometown but also anywhere else they get jobs at. Some stay, but others head off to other prestigious institutions to further their training. All the world is a garden. Instead of what Shakespeare wrote about an individual’s life from birth to death, we also consider the value of those successes, measure for measure.

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10.22.21
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[Interview] The Mission Behind Tanagokoro: A Culinary Portrait

BushwickFilmFest I Home Plays with the Feature Film, Come Back Anytime

Location: Online
Date: Sunday, October 24, 2021
Time: 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm

Price: $15 – Buy Now

Long time readers of this blog will know that I love sushi. After watching Tanagokoro: A Culinary Portrait, I don’t think I can look at many local Japanese restaurants the same ever again. The practice of Ikejime is not everywhere and this short documentary really extols the virtue of what it means to be an ethical chef. That is, to harvest the food in a way that won’t stress the product so that you’ll get the best flavour hitting those taste buds. In this work’s case, it’s all about how to best catch that fish, keep it alive and slaughter it before hitting the dinner table.

Victoria Fistes and Masashi Nozaki are both the directors and producers of this work. They produced an excellent look at the man who’s trying to revolutionize an industry, one country at a time. Victoria is a filmmaker who has worked on commercials, short films and documentaries. She’s best known for “Being Ernest,” which shares the experiences of a young blind boy. More recently, she has worked as an Assistant Producer on the documentary “Misha and The Wolves“ and as a Production Assistant on “The Reason I Jump” which won the Sundance Audience Award in 2020.

Masashi has an immense passion for culturally connecting Japan and the world. He is a producer/director who provides consultation to national companies and collaborates locally on projects with creators.

I had a chance to correspond with the team about this work:

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10.26.19
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A Victorian Theatrical Halloween Guide 2019

Looking for some last minute things to do in the days leading up to Halloween? Ed published his guide on our sister site: otakunoculture.com and it’s republished here for your convenience.

Otaku no Culture

nullBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Halloween has become synonymous with humanity’s once in the year obsession with all things occult. Whether that’s with ghosts, the macabre or fantastic beasts, folks celebrate it in myriad ways as part of this season’s tradition.

Not on this list are the traditional staples–ghostly walks, haunted fun houses and public ghost hunts–and I’m going for unique one offs. Included are theatre productions that are not rinse and repeat. Yes, while we all love to get our Rocky Picture Show on, and Atomic Vaudeville deserves special mention for putting on two different productions.

The call is out there for theatre groups or organizations with an event they wish to have listed that is not on here. Please check the contact us section to email or reply with your event!

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08.25.14
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[Victoria Fringe Festival ’14] Finding Mask Over Matter, A Review

Presented by Lightning Theatre

Mask over Matter is one of those plays with a name that conjures forth visages of wonderment and intrigue. Instead, the show offers a mix of pantomime and improv where the performers are wearing a mask in order to play archetypical characters from many a narrative. In what they represent are not necessarily that of comedy and tragedy that Greek theatre made famous. The style hails from Italy where it’s more commonly known as Commedia dell’arte. Deception is used to create its humour, and it’s a different type of improv that many may not be familiar with, much less get.

At least for this young comedy group, they are certainly learning the ropes fast. With a few members of the cast schooled by the Dave Morris’ Improv Class, at least they are being trained by the best. Andrew Brimmell and Shahin Mohamadi are two such individuals. Together, with Daniel Belkin, Robin Valerie and Kevin Koch, they play a diverse cast of characters from various social standings. They are caricatures of various occupations and a night’s show can be a discourse in social studies. As with many a performance, Brighella (Shahin Mohamadi) Arlecchino (Kevin Koch) and Columbina (Robin Valerie) introduce what this type of comedy is about and audiences are essentially being taken for a ride of slapstick after a few audience members provide a few ideas and direction to help move the night’s performance along.

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08.21.14
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Ten Fringe Shows Not to Be Missed

DV 2007-08 ProgramThe Victoria Fringe Theatre Festival is here and there is no better time to get yourself an artistic shot in the arm than during the month of August. It is during this month that many theatre companies take a much-needed rest after the year’s hullabaloo. People of the arts need their time at the beach too.

Now I am not one to talk. My experience with the Fringe is not on such a grand scale as my best friend and writing partner Ed Sum who has been Fringing since 2009. To admit sheepishly that I have only seen one Fringe show ever, and that I’ve only gone to St. Michael’s University to see a show, it is them who have that distinctive honour of opening my eyes wide open. It was their stage version of Avenue Q last year that finally pulled me off the fence to land onto the well-trimmed green front lawn of the Fringe.

Before Avenue Q, my earliest memory of knowing the Victoria Fringe Festival existed was a play that took A. A. Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh characters and thrust them into the harsh realities of frontline World War I. It was the first Fringe show I had an urge to see.

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