This past Saturday, Palace Arts Center held a limited screening of A Fine Line, a documentary celebrating women chefs and restauranteurs. A Fine Line features appearances from notable female chefs, including Lidia Bastianich, Dominique Crenn, and Cat Cora, who was in attendance at the screening.
A Fine Line was directed and produced by Joanna James, who had been working for five years to put the film together. While production of A Fine Line didn’t come without its roadblocks, James credits resurgence of the #MeToo social media movement and sexual assault allegations against high-profile chefs like Mario Batali as motivation to finish work on the film.
The film is centered mostly around restauranteur Valerie James, a single mom who struggles to secure a loan to build her restaurant. A Fine Line also brings to light sexism and misogyny female chefs and restauranteurs face while working in the hospitality industry. Currently, less than seven percent of head chefs and restauranteurs are women, despite many chefs of all genders citing women as their inspirations. James, Cora, and all of the chefs involved in A Fine Line hope the film helps create a more equal system in kitchens around the world.
Prior to the screening, Cat Cora and a group of children from the Come and Eat It program, a division of Independence Gardens, held a cooking demonstration, in which the children prepared a special dish for Cora.
Founded by Chonnie Richey, Independence Gardens aims to help the community build a relationship with the environment, both natural and man-made. The Come and Eat It program provides resources to children and teaches them how to select healthy ingredients and cook healthy meals.
A Fine Line is currently showing on select dates in select theaters across the country. For more information on how to attend a screening, visit afinelinemovie.com