Year-Round Programming
Flavor Decoded
June 25, 2025
A Film Screening & Panel on Taste, Flavor, and Food Culture
Presented by the Ceres Food Film Festival at the Museum of Food and Drink (MOFAD)
Join us for an intimate evening exploring the complex world of taste and flavor at MOFAD, where we'll dive into the cultural stories behind some of food's misunderstood and beloved elements.
Museum Experience (6:00-7:00 PM)
Guests are invited to begin the evening with a private exploration of MOFAD's current exhibition Flavor: The World to Your Brain, a sensory journey through our bodies and our world, designed and curated by food scientists and culinary anthropologists. Dive in before our screening begins!
The Films (7:00-7:40 PM)
**Films begin at 7:20 PM
MSG: Mysterious Savory Grains (Dir. Kyle Finnegan, 12:50 runtime) To share his culture through food, Chef Tim Ma must defy monosodium glutamate's unsavory reputation. This short documentary explores the cultural shift in how Americans discuss MSG and the role of activists and chefs in changing the conversation around this misunderstood ingredient.
pb&p (Dir. Eleanor Galloway, 5:36 runtime) Based on Dwight Garner's book The Upstairs Delicatessen, filmmaker Eleanor Galloway captures the magic of an unlikely pairing—the peanut butter and pickle sandwich. Both unexpected and reliable, this film speaks to the power of food to challenge and connect us all.
Panel (7:40-8:20 PM)
Following the screenings, stay for our panel of filmmakers and experts as they explore the themes of taste, flavor, and cultural perception.
Event Details:
Date: June 25, 2025
Time: 6:00 PM (Museum access) | 7:00 PM (Event begins)
Location: Museum of Food and Drink (MOFAD)
55 Water street, 2nd floor
Brooklyn, NY 11201
Duration: Museum tour (6:00-7:00 PM), Films and panel (7:00-8:30 PM)
Light Bites & Beverages Enjoy thoughtfully curated refreshments including the famous peanut butter and pickle sandwich featured in the film, along with other taste-forward bites and beverages.
Event photos here. Photos by Zia Hoskins.
From Hive to Table
April 3, 2025
We warmly invite you to a special evening at Rethink Food from 7:00pm-9:30pm ***the screening will begin at 7:30pm.
Together with our partners at the Climate Film Festival and Rethink Food, we will be exploring the intersections of urban agriculture, climate resilience, and food systems through the deeply moving documentary Keeper (dir. Hannah Rafkin), a 2025 Academy Award Shortlisted Film and 2024 Student Academy Award Gold Medalist.
Panel
After the screening, join a panel conversation on the film’s themes and their broader implications for food sustainability and environmental justice:
Hannah Rafkin – Director, Keeper
Sean Malik Flynn – Lead, Keeper
Alaura Flynn – Lead, Keeper
Moderator: Jennifer Berg – Chair, NYU Department of Nutrition and Food Studies
Light Bites & Beverages
Enjoy a thoughtfully curated vegetarian menu by Rethink Food’s culinary team, featuring upcycled light bites, incorporating Boogie Down Bronx Honey and boutique Portuguese wines by NLC Wines.
About the Film - For Flynn, a single father and empty nester in the Bronx, beekeeping is a source of calm, wisdom, and healing. Undeterred by his severe allergy to bee stings, he cares for colonies all across New York City—including four hives inside his apartment. When a cancer diagnosis threatens Flynn's life, he's forced to step away from the bees and accept the care of his 19-year old daughter Alaura, preparing her to continue living powerfully—with or without him. | Keeper is a 2025 Academy Award Shortlisted Film and a Gold Medalist Winner of the 2024 Student Academy Award 🏆
Event photos here. Stunning photography by Purna Venugopalan
Sundance 2025
January 24-26
We’re thrilled to attend the 2025 Sundance Film Festival.
On Saturday, we’ll be at Food Tank’s All Things Food & Environment Summit. You can catch Festival Director Maayan Laufer who will join Ceres alum directors, Roshan Patel (Cafe y Aves, Ceres 2024) and Matt Coddaire (From the Heartland, Ceres 2023) in a panel moderated by Food Tank President Danielle Nierenberg. We are so grateful to the wonderful people at Food Tank for inviting us to participate in their meaningful work!
On Friday January 24, Maayan Laufer and Ceres Creative Director Jesse R. Tendler will be on the panel at the 13th Annual Penn/Wharton Sundance Schmooze at the Treasure Mountain Inn from 5-7pm.
Come say hi if you’re in town! We’d love to see you and hear your thoughts as we build our 2025 Ceres Programming for this fall.