Digging Down to the Roots: On the Radical Potential of Documentary Food Films

Within the last decade there has been a significant outpouring of documentary films seeking to critique and transform the modern, industrial agricultural system. Although they have not attracted audiences comparable to a Hollywood blockbuster, some have received far more attention than is usual for documentary films. This article seeks to offer a strategy for thinking about these films' ability to facilitate deep-rooted change. First, we must consider them as filmic texts and understand what they attempt to communicate; second, we must consider how audiences engage (or do not engage) with them; and third, we must assess the constraints of the mainstream media industries and opportunities for circulating alternative messages. Although there has not yet been much scholarly examination of these films, they have the potential to make a significant impact on the ways that we produce, sell, and consume food.