The fifth taste — savory, elusive, and deeply human. This issue explores the chemistry of flavor and the cinema of nourishment. Between molecule and memory, Umami asks how we perceive the world through what we eat, and what we become in the act of tasting. From fermentation and digestion to ritual and hunger, the films in this issue reveal food as language, culture, ecosystem, and emotion. Taste is not only on the tongue — it lives in the mind, the soil, the sea, and the stories we tell.
"Yummy Body Truck" is a fictional food truck that sells 'edible human body parts'. The stall collects samples of organisms found nearby, grinds their flesh into mouldable paste, and reshapes it into forms of human bodies. Different types of flesh can be characterised by factors such as pigmentation,
When Linh's father visits her in America and insists on cooking a traditional Vietnamese meal for the family, the dinner takes on a life of its own, confronting Linh with her past and culture.
A food-loving and scientific tribute to the Mediterranean diet and, not least, the liquid gold: olive oil.
The operation room lights shine brightly in four surgical theatres. The class is connected remotely in this simultaneous surgical lesson. The teacher calls for the instruments needed: "the blade!". Four multicoloured gloves in four different screens pick up sharp instruments – wait, are they k
The Kelp We Breathe dives deeper into questions of why kelp matters to us, unveiling culture, passion, and community.
"Cooking is caring" and this is an ode to one of the most affectionate gestures. An animation that takes us through the preparation of a meal, from coriander soup to hake dumplings, and the playful dynamics this familiar (and familial) routine provides.
For her contribution to the Viennale's 60th anniversary, Argentine experimentalist Narcisa Hirsch has chosen to dip back into history. Her trailer is a reconfigured excerpt from her 1971 film CANCIONES NAPOLITANES . In this short passage, we see a close-up of a woman's mouth, accompanied by the musi
A fisherwoman determined to save a dying lake takes on a powerful local politician by cooking him a remarkable meal. A Special Jury Award winner at Clermont-Ferrand 2024 from director Rishi Chandna (Tungrus, SFF 2019).
Two bears are hungry in NYC. Hungry for salmon. Follow Big Bear and Little Bear's respective expeditions through the city in search of a scrumptious meal. From lavish fine dining to lively food carts – through the simple act of eating – the relationship between bears and salmon enables t
Under a blazing summer sky, Chloe, Jenny (12 years old), and Squeegee (19 years old) share one last ice cream at the local dairy bar. It's a poetic animated chronicle of childhood friendship, its challenges in the face of adolescence, and the first fractures of friendship.
A German immigrant pickle-making family and their pursuit of the American Dream is challenged by the ever changing world affected by climate change, gentrification, and covid. The pursuit of happiness served sweet & sour.
Nestled in the hills of Enosburg Falls, Vermont Flack Family Farm has been contributing to the vibrance of their community through their symbiotic work in the soil for nearly a half a century. Their tradition of producing ferments using their bio-dynamically grown vegetables sustains the farm and th
Manuel Galindo, a man linked to sand, fire, sea and air, as the last sardine roaster. Raised on the beaches, Manuel was not initially destined to be a sardine roaster, but a family tragedy forced him to devote himself to this profession. Through the embers and the flavors he creates, he reveals stor
New Roots, Old Recipes' celebrates the rich cultural cuisines and diverse flavours in Toronto only possible by immigrant chefs who now call this city their home. It focuses on the lives of four successful chefs: Nuit Regular, Maha Barsoom, Simone Lawrence and Gulshan Alibhai; who find connection to
On the shifting waters of the Solway Firth, the last Haaf netters keep alive an ancient fishing tradition—captured in images hand-developed with seaweed gathered from the same shores.
The documentary introduces us to Laura Veraguas, a culinary rebel who transformed Barcelona's dining landscape before embarking on her own bold venture with Andrea. Together, the duo has redefined high-end catering, creating exquisite dishes for elite clients, but with a twist. Forget lobster and oy
"The Path of Stone Soup" is a documentary that will entice you with the sights and sounds of an ancient tradition. Stone Soup originates in the river system surrounding the Mexican village of San Felipe Usila, located in the state of Oaxaca. This "docu-legend" tells the story of a pre-Hispanic recip
Located on the Northeast coast of Brazil, a village of fishermen enact a ritual of embracing the fish that they have caught. The affectionate hug that accompanies the ritual marks a passage of death and a relationship between species that is imbued with an ambiguous sequence of gestures of tendernes
Adventurers, exotic fruits fanatics and even movie star Bill Pullman, are the subjects of The Fruit Hunters, the new film from acclaimed director Yung Chang. A thrilling journey through nature, commerce and adventure, The Fruit Hunters is a cinematic odyssey that takes viewers from the dawn of human
In Georgia, in the middle of a desert, on the hottest day of summer two water-melon sellers cross paths and their competition begins
Discover in an intimate and humorous way the life cycle of this mollusk, from its odyssey in the ocean depths to its arrival on our plates.
An urban wasteland in a poor, outlying district of Berlin becomes the site of a young woman's (Marina) unconventional quest. Neglected for years due to the exorbitant price demanded by its owner, the land comes back to life when the woman plants potatoes and beans, and street children join her in he
An intimate look at Indigenous culture and salmon fishing, with a focus on an Alaskan family that fights to defend their history, future, and lifestyle. – Anita Raswant
In a community hall, a group of facilitators, apprentices, volunteers, people living with dementia and their supporters come together. As they share memories of food, they discover ways the past can affect the present.
The chicken lost its head, the cow's guts are out in the open and blood is spurting all over the screen. The protagonist of Gobble Up is employed at a meat processing plant. Work at a production line where processes are automated has made her approach her job and its effects in a cool-headed way dev
After a series of mysterious and debilitating allergic reactions to food, a young woman joins a radical community of people who claim to live on light.
When polar opposite sisters reunite for their grandparents' wedding anniversary, Nur is in charge of the dinner, but all eyes seem to fixate on Karina, despite Nur's best efforts to conform to her family's expectations. In the middle of numpeng (a dinner ritual) Karina starts itching and blames Nur
Somewhere in Brittany, meet Alex in his magic garden — a quiet, intimate portrait of nature, home cultivation and the personal sanctuary of a gardener.
Binaural sound mix, please use headphones. Panorama Exótico explores and satirizes what it means to call something "exotic". The use of the term is almost always charged with racial, gendered or nationalistic assumptions. Calling something "exotic" often reveals more about the person labellin
Different voices engage in dialogue with the deities, nature, and themselves. As they reflect on food, emotional bonds, and time, nature seems to open up in mutual conversation.
A slice of chocolate cake becomes immortalized as a 3D model. As the cake enters the digital realm it transforms into an art object of limitless possibility. Rendering is fun, especially when it involves endless cake! But rendering takes work and a devastating environmental toll. Originally performe
Driven by a determination to combat desertification, a crisis predicted to claim 90% of the planet's land by 2050, landscape architect Louis De Jaeger embarks on a 7-year mission to transform a dune into a food forest. The documentary captures the grit and ingenuity required to regenerate soil and c
Supported by Prohelvetia. In a long, narrow, modernist kitchen, Mayar El-Bakry, a Swiss Egyptian designer, is cooking. Using anonymously designed cooking tools and objects ubiquitous to the SWANA region, she is preparing a variety of dishes: falafel, ma'amoul, kousa mahshi, tajine and other staples
A look at the role of fungi in cheese making as told by French cheese makers and expert fermentation specialists.
Erde essen/ Eating Soil is an essay film that deals with the stories of Colombian women originating from director Laura Weissenberger's memories and projections on her home country. It is exploring Colombian narrative culture based on the stories of a fictional family, which metaphorically represent
A Korean mother shares her story of immigrating to Canada while making Kimchi.
The 144-year-old Yoshida Saké Brewery does things the old-fashioned way: dedicated artisans work in concert with natural forces — the temperature and humidity of the air, the chemistry of the water, the swirling koji mold that fuels fermentation — to uphold a millennia-old traditi
How was the Moon born? Here is the tumultuous story of a small planet, Theia, which, by crashing into the Earth, ultimately made the emergence of life possible. To understand it better, let's take a bite of a few cakes… An episode of the series "Astronome gastronome." Directed by: Genevieve A
A short film on Dok Fermentary's transformative experimentation with enzymes, organic materials, flavors, textiles, and time.
Pho is everywhere- one of the world's favorite Southeast Asian foods and the national dish of Vietnam. But before it was a global sensation- it was a humble noodle soup served by migrants from one small village called Van Cu. In Northern Vietnam for another shoot, we decided to take a drive to this
A Pot Full of Dreams is a warm and visually powerful documentary about food as a tool for connection, compassion, and hope. We follow future gastronome Rozbeh Javid on a unique journey through Iran, where different religious communities cook to bring people together and ease loneliness. From the Zor
An unassuming prize, buried in the soil, the truffle is the diamond in the dirt of the culinary world. For those versed in where to find them, and how to cultivate them, the path to a small fortune traces its way through local woodlands, only hidden by shadow and the carpet of fallen leaves.
Backyard Food is a short film, a synesthetic visual essay that invites us to meet Maria, Vera and Wanusa, who have in common the fact that they maintain their productive urban backyards, a form of resistance in the verticalized territory of the city of Belo Horizonte. There, they talk about the rela
The film is an inspiring inner journey through the vivid memories of Michelin-starred chef Gil Fernandes. "Memórias" is not only the title of Gil's menù, it's also a creative diary where he recalls the flavours and the moments of his life.
We enter a constructed setting, against the background of a video wall that suggests we are in a restaurant. A Japanese restaurant, as can be concluded from the conveyor belt which forms part of the fittings. Running Sushi consists of a casual conversation between Steffi and Johnny in a sushi restau
In this film we are taking a perspective of the crab and through his eyes and ears we are able to discover worlds that he lives in. Animals are our silent companions; they have witnessed the greatest achievements and most horrible failures of humankind. They live their lives parallel to ours –
Amoris Pomum is narrated by prolific Argentine actor Ricardo Darín using the words of a poem written by the 1971 Nobel Prize for literature winner, Pablo Neruda."
A profile of Sandor Katz of Woodbury, Tennessee, winner of the 2014 Craig Claiborne Lifetime Achievement Award.
Taste of Home is the story of a group of immigrants to the UK retracing memories of their home nations through food. The film is a journey that will explore the reasons why they left one country for another and ask the question, where is home?
Flour Studies poetically explores the movement of woman's hands as she prepares bread dough, transforming her hands and the flour itself into an expansive sea. She blurs the lines between tangible observation and abstract concepts, portraying movement as a continuous flow, like the dough's developme
On a summer morning in August, Tsumungi and Pithunglo are off to the bamboo grooves in the forests of Ralan, a village in Wokha District of Nagaland. They call out to Yanchano to join them to harvest fresh bambooshoot along with them. They are a team. Thousands of women in Northeast India forage and
Washoku (Japanese cuisine) benefits from premium raw ingredients and skilled chefs, but the distinctive umami flavor essential to many dishes is especially dependent upon the processors who dry, smoke and ferment skipjack tuna. While most processors have industrialized production, the finest artisan
Author and chef Edward Lee finds the beauty in rot on a journey to better understand how the ancient process of fermentation is used in modern times. In the feature-length documentary FERMENTED, author and chef Edward Lee goes on a journey to understand how the ancient process of fermentation is use
What connects a weakened ecosystem with a global food culture, and what lessons does the past hold for the future? Umi No Oya, Mother of the Sea tells the story of a discovery that revolutionized Japanese nori aquaculture and partially led to the rise of a global sushi culture. With subtle landscape
A girl who's always drawn to takoyaki, but hesitates—until she finally gives in and becomes addicted. Takoyaki (octopus balls) is a popular and delicious Japanese street food.
One Dominican Restaurant in Brooklyn serves over 500 customers, daily. Not including the men who wait outside, Every Night.
In Jammy Beggar the camera observes the intimate gestures of three pairs of hands as they prepare apples. Kitchens become spaces of unseen work, where knowledge is passed through touch, repetition, and the oral transmission of recipes. Using close-up footage, sensations of care are present in the ha
Some Interesting Apples is a community film about the UK's only orchard solely dedicated to the cultivation of selected wild-grown chance-seedling apples. These are often roadside apple trees, 'planted' unwittingly by someone who drove past and chucked their apple core out of the car window. If the
During an opulent and luxurious banquet, complete with hordes of servers and valets, eleven pampered guests participate in what appears to be a ritualistic gastronomic carnage. In this absurd and grotesque universe, an unexpected sequence of events undermines the endless symphony of abundance.
"HOT!" is a documentary about the growing worldwide love for chili. A spicy trip to the hottest locations, festivals and chili experts around the globe.
A whimsical black and white film essay exploring the Tuscan landscape and its relationship between, tradition, modernity and food. Through shimmering hand-processed, window-framed ruminations, time passes in licks of light, while a storm gathers and a woman makes pasta by hand.
Seasoned, fermented, gamy, marinated, smoked foods are not always our favourite. Japanese natto, Chinese 100-year-old egg, long-aged French cheeses, or even Swedish surströmming... Even steeped in rot, the dishes that we consider appetizing vary according to cultures and times.
The flavor lab is a laboratory restaurant where curious experiments and funny adventures take place. In this restaurant, a new type of visual food is created, defying the laws of nature and physics...
The Camembert cheese is going to disappear soon. How can it be ? A story of molds that gives us a lesson about biodiversity preservation. A film with Tatiana Giraud (CNRS, France), Jeanne Ropars (CNRS, France) and Joëlle Dupont (MNHN, France).
To share his culture through food, Chef Tim Ma must defy monosodium glutamate's unsavory reputation. In 1968, the forces of racism and consumer activism collided to give monosodium glutamate (MSG) its unsavory reputation. Today, chef Tim Ma is on a mission to change that perception and use MSG as a
In 1975, after having fled the war, a Vietnamese family finds shelter in France. In a mix of culture and poetry, we follow the family throughout several generations
Beans, Rinsed Twice follows tales, histories, memories and recipes tied up in a bean. How many stories can a recipe tell? And who do these stories belong to? Through the personal and historical symbolism of a bean - and, consequently, the process of growing, harvesting and cooking this seed - the fi
Brigid LeFevre runs the community supported agriculture operation "Förädlad" (roughly "Enhanced") in Järna, Sweden. It's a biodynamic vegetable garden that focuses on fermenting the harvest in order to enrich it with nutritious lactic acid bacteria and to make it keep for a really lon
This short animation is about an old lady I met in Kagoshima a couple years back. She told me the story of why she became a fisherwoman and some advice that I wanted to translate into a film. My goal is to be able to go back to the docks there and show her the film. I'm very lucky I was able to make
Quirky and contemplative, this delectable documentary takes us on a surprising global odyssey into the world of cheese, drawing unexpected parallels between the aging of cheese and the human experience of growing old.
Algae have helped shape life on Earth in ways we can barely imagine. But in his visually exquisite science fiction documentary 'The Two Faces of Tomorrow', film artist Patrick Hough gives us a speculative insight into this peculiar life form. Through the observations of an unseen scientist, we move
Sea Flavors is a tribute to the flavours and textures of the sea, created through the power of plants. The careful selection and creative use of ingredients such as vegetables, seaweed and more allows you to experience the authentic flavours of the sea without resorting to animal products. At a time
Through the eyes of a scientist questioning plant consciousness, a pea plant dreaming of its past in Rome's Colosseum, and a botanist unravelling a mystery, The Everlasting Pea invites a profound reimagining of our relationship with the vegetal world.
OPENING THE EARTH: THE POTATO KING is a documentary about Julio Hancco, a aging guardian of biodiversity living at 14,600 ft above sea level in the Andes Mountains if Peru. His humble life and rise to international fame is contrasted with the global significance of his work and how the modern world
Blandine works in a salting factory and makes sausages. To avoid monotony, she dreams a fantasy world where she attends idled sausages. After a meeting with her boss, her world collapses.
In the heart of Moldavia, a dessert tells the story. In her kitchen, Maria prepares GuguuÉ, a cherry cake inspired by a mythical figure from Soviet culture. As the pancakes pile up, archive images resurface: those of GuguuÉ wearing an oversized hat, symbolizing a shared past. Between c
Bolivian artist and filmmaker Luciana Decker Orozco delves into ancient and essential acts: eating, masticating and digesting. Her suggestive celluloid slips through mouths, intestines and entrails, as well as experiments in the catacombs of the human being and the Earth. Inspired by the avant-gardi
An intimate journey into the heart of Bologna's culinary heritage, guided by master pasta maker Alessandra Spisni as she prepares tagliatelle with ragù.
In 2020, the documentary's director had access to the belongings of her maternal grandmother, Zizi, who had just passed away at the age of 95. Among her belongings was a notebook of recipes. Luisa tried to find out if her paternal grandmother, Lourdes, also kept a recipe book and discovered that she
"Mars au Marsala" is an episode from the series "Astronome Gastronome," directed by Geneviève Anhoury. This short film delves into humanity's enduring fascination with Mars, exploring the quest for extraterrestrial life and the search for water on the Red Planet. Utilizing culinary metaphors,