The documentary Cooking Up Dreams offers us a close look at the gastronomical side of Peru. Director Ernesto Cabellos takes us on a world-tour of the many Peruvian restaurants and opens the door to many of the kitchens that create a fusion of colours and flavours.
In speaking with Cabellos, I learned that the motives behind the film are not just to showcase his country’s cuisine. It’s about showing how food is so closely linked to Peruvians’ sense of identity and culture. He talked about how food clearly fuses the many cultural influences of Peruvian society over the past five hundred years. What better way to discuss Peruvian identity, culture and the potential for economic development than through its gastronomy?
Cabellos talked about how generally, food was something shared among friends and family but now, it’s something shared with the world. The film takes us from the jungle in Peru to the high scale Peruvian restaurants in Madrid and other European countries. When Cabellos asked me what made me interested in the film, I had to honestly say it was the sights of the many people sharing meals with friends and family, the various cultural events, the traditions surrounding certain dishes and of course, relating to those who’ve left “home” to move to faraway lands. My identity as latina is very much tied to the food from home that my grandmother, mother and aunts cooked for us growing up. Cabellos and I talked about how it was important for him to show that side of Peru; the festivities and dishes specific to the Day of the Dead, for example… the cooking styles varying across regions from the most primitive to the most modern. All the things we hear about but not often see on film. He hopes the film will make Peruvians realise the value in their cuisine. Not only is it tied to their national identity and culture but it is also closely linked to biodiversity due to the variety of ingredients that can go into a single dish. Biodiversity helps to sustain their cultural diversity. Everything is liked together.
The film premiered in Lima, Peru last year. It was the opening film for the Festival de Cine de Lima (Lima’s Film Festival). In the last two weeks or so, it also showed at the Chicago Latino Film Festival and at the Havana Film Festival in New York City. The film was loved in Peru not only because it’s a local film but anyone from Latin America can relate to it on some level or another, said Cabellos. He is happy with the positive reception and reviews.
After the film screening this past Friday, Cabellos and producer Susana Araujo took some questions from the audience. Here you see a snippet of that Q&A session. They talked about the time it took to make the film from research to editing. They also mentioned they hope the film will be made into an educational DVD for students training to be chefs and anyone else who is interested. There may be a possibility to access the recipes of many dishes featured in the film via the film’s website. The film has an added screening at Hot Docs on Sunday, May 9th at 8:30pm; more details here.
Una corta nota para mis amigos latinos: Espero que tengan la oportunidad de ver este documental no sólo por apoyar a nuestros compañeros peruanos pero por apoyo a la comunidad entera. Este documental presenta parte de nuestra cultura de una manera íntima y al mismo tiempo, nos hace pensar acerca de maneras nuevas en que podríamos avanzar nuestros países. Ojalá puedan atender la próxima presentación el Domingo 9 de Mayo. Un saludo muy especial para Ernesto y Susana por compartir parte de esta historia conmigo.
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Thanks for adding the words in Spanish–tru dat, as the kids say.