Tag Archives: Bread

02.02.22
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Why Breaking Bread Matters and Where to Find this Documentary

Breaking Bread (2022) | Fandango Breaking Bread goes beyond simply showing how this food product can be delicately designed. There’s many ways to make it, bake it and serve it. What’s presented is more than an attack on the taste buds. To know what it represents to bring peace along the Gaza Strip is at the core of this work by filmmaker Beth Elise Hawk. Her film is excellent at highlighting how this part of the world operates because it shows not everyone is an extremist. They’re just business and everyday people too.

This work carefully looks at the life and times of many restaurateurs of different local nationalities and cuisine. In terms of how many operations were profiled, I lost track after counting at least twelve. 

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10.20.20
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The Man Behind Bread in the Bones, An Interview with Darrell Varga

Location: Al Whittle Theatre
450 Main St
Wolfville, Nova Scotia

Date: Friday, Oct 23, 2020
Time: 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm

Buy In-person screening or Online Tickets here

* w/ Q&A after the film with director Darrell Varga and Festival Host Bob Blumer.

Darrell Varga is a professor by day and baker at other times. His passion for the former began when he took a class in film history, and it opened his mind to the possibilities of the moving image. Many years later, his interest became his occupation, including penning many books and having a tenure at NSCAD University (Nova Scotia College of Art and Design) where he teaches cinema history and documentary film production.

When he’s not in the office, he worked on Hunters and Gatherers, about the world of collectors (and not just geek stuff) in 1994. This work predates the television show Collector’s Call and many other similar documentaries. He followed up with another piece in 1996, Working Days, funded in part by TVOntario, is about the closure of a Toronto factory (the first to close) after the signing of Free Trade with the US in the 80s and the sense of loss the workers had and the community. Not as well known is a video essay, Fire, Ice and Sky (2013) which explored the ideas of time and landscape.

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10.16.20
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Devour 9.5 with Bread in the Bones. It’s a Guilty Pleasure

Devour Food & Film Festival

Location: Al Whittle Theatre
450 Main St
Wolfville, Nova Scotia

Date: Friday, Oct 23, 2020
Time: 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm

Buy In-person screening or Online Tickets here

* includes the short Alchemy.
* physical event includes a Q&A after the film with director Darrell Varga and Festival Host Bob Blumer.

The cultural history of bread is not just about how people come together to bake, but also with its influence in Western Civilization. The analogies made in Bread in the Bones is simply amazing as it delves into different platforms of expression. From edible art by Salvador Dali to poetry by Lewis Carroll, there’s a lot to this loaf’s hold in various aspects of life which I didn’t even realize!

I won’t discuss the politics as it’s not my thing, but I will say many Bakers, authors and historians (sorry, no candlestick makers) are featured in this scrumptious documentary made by baker, professor and film historian Darrell Varga. He’s travelled off the beaten track to gather different stories to feature in his work. Stu Silverstein stands out because while he may look like a stoner from the 70s, he has a lot of far out wisdom to note.

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06.01.16
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There’s a La Tana between Fan Tan Alley and Market Square

la tana IMG_20151017_133023409La Tana Italian Bakery
101-3 Fan-Tan Alley
Chinatown
Victoria, BC
(250) 920-6213

La Tana is a bakery located a few doors away from Fan Tan Alley‘s south side entrance and when I was crossing the street from Market Square to head to Triple Spiral, I was detoured away by the luxurious smells that emerged out of here. The lunch time crowd was fairly sizable, and when the sandwiches are made out of fresh ciabatta bread, I can understand why this place is popular.

Not only is the owner raised on traditional values when he was growing up in Italy but also he gave up a more brilliant career (he was to be a computer programmer) to focus on his love for bread. I can see why with the scents that drew me in like a mouse to cheese, and with plenty of baked snacks lining the displays, I was tempted to get more than just a sandwich on this visit. Each day presents a different variety of baked sweets and I thought about grabbing some Lingues and Pizza Blancas.

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