Title:                      Heart and Soil

Director:                Mara LeGrand

Producer:               Mara LeGrand

Screenwriter:         Mara LeGrand

Editor:                   Christopher Wright, Mara LeGrand

Year:                      2007 (45 minutes)

Synopsis:  Heart and Soil is a family documentary leading us on a journey into the rich landscape and lives of farmers in the southwest.  The story weaves between the bustling energy of the Farmers Market and farm-to-school programs, into the land where farmers speak about topics such as seeds, soil, weather, water, nutrition, and livestock philosophy, as well as the costs and risks of farming on a small scale in a market that is becoming increasingly corporate.  We learn from Native Peoples about the first farmers on this land and how communities and families are strengthened through a connection with agriculture.  Water specialists remind us of the inter-relationship between ecological principles and responsibility in agriculture and how our need for food is dependent upon water.  Restaurant owners and nutritionists recommend that we not leave being fed in the hands of corporations and rely upon fossil fuels for its production, packaging, and transport.  The answer to long-term sustainability lie in nature, and reconnecting with local food sources is one good way toward better health for ourselves and our planet.  The farmers are inspiration for us all to dig in more, grow our own, or support those who do, to the benefit of our lives and our planet.

Review:  In a sense, Heart and Soil is a propaganda film.  The director, Mara LeGrand, set out to make a film to promote sustainable agriculture.  I’m all for sustainable agriculture, but I’m opposed to propaganda.  Even so, LeGrand crafted her film in such a way that I found myself enjoying it.  I knew from the start that LeGrand had an agenda, but she didn’t force her agenda upon the audience.  Instead, she told the story of farmers in the southwest who are using sustainable agricultural practices to produce food, earn a living, and heal the land.  What’s not to like about that?

I was afraid that Heart and Soil might veer off course and start to bash corporate farming.  However, she never did.  She just stuck to her story – the story of the farmers – and let her viewers decide for themselves how they feel about sustainable agriculture.

 (3 out of 5)

Film Website:  http://www.heartandsoilfilm.com/

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