Reel Asian x CJ Noms - Foodie Films! Plus - A Giveaway :)

We were recently approached by Reel Asian regarding their new foodie films and let me tell you, we are ECSTATIC because we're both huge food and movie buffs. As foodies, you're exposed to a lot different cuisines, cooking styles and a LOT of buzzwords but we often find the education of food is lacking especially in this day and age. Everyone now a days is a foodie but no one really understands the work, sweat, blood and tears that go behind preparing a dish from beginning to end. Enter the food series with Reel Asian.

Today, communities in North America are more diverse than it ever was. Cultures from around the world seek to build a better life in America. They bring new ideas and experiences into Western culture. The most prominent way to express ones culture and identity, is through food. We are excited to watch these foodie films from the Reel Asian International Film Festival where these stories are brought to life. We are looking forward to the two featured films Changing Season: On the Masumoto Family Farm and Off the Menu: Asian America!

Film, Changing Season: On the Masumoto Family Farm follows the father-daughter story of David 'Mas' Masumoto and Nikiko. Originally arid and bought dirt cheap by Mas' parents upon their release from WWII internment camps, the farm is currently 80 acres of Certified Organic land. Famed for its sustainability, social responsibility and magnificient heirloom harvest, the farm is certainly a labour of love from the humble Masumoto family. The movie takes viewers for a number of turns to see the variety of changes this farm undergoes through a year. Screening to take place Saturday November 7 at 2:00PM

What we're most excited about for this screening is that David 'Mas' Masumoto will be in attendance at the screening and will be giving a free 'Food Talk' as part of the 10th Industry Series panel discussion! Masumoto has written many books and given numerous about sustainable farming and agriculture. From past talks, you can really hear his love for the land dotting his speech. He's enthusiastic and its contagious!

The second film, Off the Menu dives into original stories from different backgrounds and how they incorporated their Asian culture into America. The film showcases how Asian cultures have adapted in America through food and how to balance traditional Asian dishes with Western flavours. While Changing Season concentrates more on the integrity of ingredients and the amount of work that goes into growing the produce we often take for granted, Off the Menu dives into how the environment and culture influence our taste and cooking. We're so looking forward to this film for that very reason: we're both Chinese but were born in Canada and grew up understanding Chinese but not fluent. Yet, while we can't speak the language, we're familiar with Chinese cooking, flavours and dishes (we don't even blink when we see chicken feet, chicken cartilage or blood jello). We find it so interesting to see how the environment and your culture affect your view on food.

Bonus: We're excited to present our readers and followers the chance to win a set of tickets to "Off the Menu" as well as an exclusive tasting. Simply head to our Instagram page and follow the instructions to enter for a chance to win!