Hulu Acquires ‘Food Evolution,’ Acclaimed, Highly Controversial Doc
EXCLUSIVE: Hulu has acquired the exclusive U.S. VOD rights to Food Evolution from Academy Award-nominated director Scott Hamilton Kennedy (The Garden). The highly polarizing film is narrated by science communicator Neil deGrasse Tyson. The film will premiere on Hulu on Sept. 21.
The doc is significant for a couple of reasons. First, it is one of the most controversial and contentious docs on the food industry because it delves into the positive side of GMOs on sustaining the human food supply, and second, it received a rare 100% Rotten Tomatoes rating.
The film tells the story of GMOs, from Hawaiian papaya groves — where experimentation with GMOs and the pesticides they involve has been deemed a disaster to school children in the area by other documentaries like Island Earth — to the cornfields of Iowa and banana farms in Uganda.
The doc has been condemned by organic growers and called “a corporate propaganda film” as it was funded by Institute of Food Technologists. A top IFT exec at the time was Janet Collins, who was a former DuPont and Monsanto executive; she now works for CropLife America, the pesticide trade association. IFT’s president-elect Cindy Stewart works for DuPont. The filmmakers have defended their funding while critics say they are propagating “Monsanto science.”
In the GMO debate, both pro and anti camps claim science is on their side. So Food Evolution delves into the questions: How do we ensure that our global food supply is safe, and that everyone has enough to eat? How do we feed the world while also protecting the planet? Has genetic engineering increased or decreased pesticide use? Are GMO foods bad for your health?
Black Valley Films’ Scott Hamilton Kennedy and Boomdozer’s Trace Sheehan produced the film and also served as co-writers.
The deal was negotiated by Andrew Herwitz, President of Film Sales Company.
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