New to DVD this week:
FOOD COOP
Director:
Tom Boothe
World Premiere:
Paris theatrical release (October 2016)
Select Festivals:
Planet in Focus, San Francisco Green, Twin Cities
About:
An in-depth look at Brooklyn’s Park Slope Food Coop.
Established in 1973, the Coop is a member-run collective that is able to offer a wide range of fresh food at substantially lower than average prices because they keep down costs by having the membership work the store. Planning his own Paris version of the Coop, director Tom Boothe observes the inner workings while also interviewing various members as they fulfill their work obligations, such as composting, clean up, check out, and walking customers to the subway; follows the activities of some of the small paid administrative staff; and checks in on various committees, who handle disciplinary matters, food selection, events, etc. While the project feels a bit overlong and shapeless, it works as an institutional portrait and successfully captures how this unique entity has managed to be a sustainable, successful business in the long-term.
