''A Place at the Table'' is a 2012 film produced by Lori Silverbush and Kristi Jacobson, with appearances by

Jeff Bridges Jeffrey Leon Bridges (born December 4, 1949) is an American actor. He is known for his Leading actor, leading man roles in film and television. In a career spanning over seven decades, he has received List of awards and nominations received by ...

, Raj Patel, and chef Tom Colicchio. The film, concerning hunger in the United States, was released theatrically in the United States on March 1, 2013.

Production background

Participant Media Participant Media, LLC was an American independent Film industry, film and television production company founded in 2004 by Jeffrey Skoll, dedicated to entertainment intended to spur social change. The company financed and co-produced film and te ...

is the entertainment company behind the film, and it is distributed by Magnolia Pictures. The Participant/Magnolia team is also responsible for the film '' Food, Inc.'' (2008). The film was originally titled ''Finding North'' but the name was later changed to ''A Place at the Table''.

Synopsis

As of 2012, about 50 million Americans were food insecure. This was approximately 1 in 6 of the overall population, with the proportion of children facing food insecurity even higher at about 1 in 4. One in every two children receive federal food assistance. The film sees directors Kristi Jacobson and Lori Silverbush examine the issue of hunger in America, largely through the stories of three people suffering from food insecurity: *Barbie, a single

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

mother who grew up in poverty and is trying to provide a better life for her two children. *Rosie, a

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

fifth-grader who often has to depend on friends and neighbors to feed her and has trouble concentrating in school. *Tremonica, a

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

second-grader whose asthma and health problems are exacerbated by the largely-empty calories her hard-working mother can afford. Other Americans struggling with hunger are also featured, including a cop whose monthly paychecks only leaves him enough money to buy food for two weeks, forcing him to use a

food bank A food bank or food pantry is a non-profit, charitable organization that distributes food to those who have difficulty purchasing enough to avoid hunger, usually through intermediaries like food pantries and soup kitchens. Some food banks distrib ...

. ''A Place at the Table'' shows how hunger poses serious economic, social, and cultural implications for the United States, and that the problem can be solved once and for all, if the American public decides – as they have in the past – that making healthy food available and affordable is in everyone's best interest.

Book release

There is also a companion book titled ''A Place at the Table: The Crisis of 49 Million Hungry Americans and How to Solve It,'' edited by Peter Pringle and published by Public Affairs. The book features contributions from

, Ken Cook,

Marion Nestle Marion Nestle (born 1936) is an American molecular biologist, nutritionist, and public health advocate. She is the Paulette Goddard Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health Emerita at New York University. Her research examines ...

, Bill Shore, Joel Berg, Robert Egger, Janet Poppendieck, David Beckmann, Mariana Chilton, Tom Colicchio, Jennifer Harris, Andy Fisher, Kelly Meyer and directors Kristi Jacobson and Lori Silverbush.

Awards

The film was nominated for Grand Jury Prize at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival. At the 2013 IDA Documentary Awards, the film received the Pare Lorentz Award, which recognizes films for model filmmaking while focusing on the use of the natural environment, and justice for all and the illumination of pressing social problems.

Critical reception

The film has received positive reviews. As of October 2015, it has a 90% approval ratings from 61 professional reviews aggregated by

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

. The following are a few examples of critical response to the film: *"''A Place at the Table'' forcefully makes the case that hunger has serious economic, social and cultural implications for the nation." - Julie Makinen, ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' *"The film explains with devastating simplicity why so many go hungry in a country with more than enough food to go round." - ''

London Evening Standard The ''London Standard'', formerly the ''Evening Standard'' (1904–2024) and originally ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), is a long-established regional newspaper published weekly and distributed free of charge in London, England. It is print ...

'' *"Beautifully shot and edited. The craft is of a very high level." - Toronto HotDocs Film Festival "Must See List" *"''A Place at the Table'' is an engaging and enraging movie that will enlist supporters for its cause." - '' Variety''

References

External links

* *
Participant Media

Magnolia Pictures
{{DEFAULTSORT:Place At The Table, The 2012 films 2012 documentary films American documentary films Documentary films about food and drink Documentary films about poverty in the United States Films scored by T Bone Burnett Hunger Participant (company) films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films English-language documentary films