I Am Hungry In Philadelphia
The Many Faces Food Insecurity
Produced By Harry Hayman Philadelphia
Directed By:
Kaloni Davis
Story By:
David Greenberg
The Project & It's Goals
Nationwide rates of food insecurity have gone down everywhere except in Philadelphia, the sixth biggest city in the country and the poorest out of
the top ten major metropolitan areas.
Proposal
“I’m Hungry In Philadelphia” seeks to not only answer this question but provide possible solutions through interviews with academics, politicians, doctors, food insecurity activists, and a cross-section of citizens. The documentary will appeal to socially conscious audiences, philanthropists, and regular audiences looking for an eye-opening examination of an issue that might surprise them. The budget is $50,000 which will cover the costs of equipment rental, crew, post production, the festival strategy, marketing, and public relations. Employing a gritty cinematic style that captures the feel of the city and using a mix of Voice-over narration and on-camera interviews, the documentary will get to the heart of the issue through testimonials and footage showing the magnitude of the problem. Production is scheduled to begin in winter 2024 and continue through the spring followed by post-production that should be completed in time to submit to Oscar-qualifying festivals in the fall. The director, writer, and producers have been meeting since November 2023 and the project is coming together quickly.
Film Synopsis
The city of Philadelphia needs little introduction, the birthplace of the country, home to ‘Rocky’, cheesesteaks, some of the
finest restaurants in the country, and the biggest city park in the world. The film will begin with the familiar, a quick look at
the things everyone knows but it will then shake things up with a raw, uncompromising view of the country’s poorest big city.
We will then introduce the problem by discussing it through interviews with local and federal officials, professors, medical
professionals, advocates, people out on the streets working towards a solution, and finally, first-person accounts of what it is
like to live not knowing where your next meal will come from.
Dive! The Film (2010), an award-winning film that illustrates the amount of food waste in this country by following a group of dumpster divers.
A Place At The Table (2012)
specifically addresses the issue of food insecurity and features a single mother from Philadelphia; it was produced by Participant
Media, whose documentary won the Oscar for best feature-length documentary in 2009.
Hunger In America (2014),
is an Emmy award-winning
documentary.
Hungry To Learn (2019)
which focuses on hunger
among college students forced
to choose between paying tuition and eating, played at South By Southwest and other important festivals.
Audience Details
The Project & It's Goals
The film will appeal to academics and professionals working on the frontline of the issue, individuals with an interest in social causes but, perhaps even more importantly, we hope to reach people unfamiliar with the issue in the hope that it will open their eyes and inspire activism.
Casting Ideas
After horror, the second most purchased genre of film at the American Film Market is the socially aware documentary.
The director, writer, and producers have compiled their list of potential interview subjects from all areas of the issues, from
those seeking to solve it to those who are confronted with the reality of it every day.
The team has personal and professional connections to Oscar and Grammy award-winning international superstar Will Smith as well as his musical partner DJ Jazzy Jeff as well as acclaimed musicians Black Thought and James Poser of The Roots, who could narrate, score, and possibly even provide an attention-getting single.
Director's Notes
Director Kaloni Davis’ most recent documentary A Hope That Lights The Way (2023) produced, in part, by the city of Philadelphia spotlights the culture surrounding the epidemic of gun violence in the city’s Black community.
A graduate of Philadelphia’s Creative and Performing Arts High School and the film program at Temple University, a Top 25 film program as of 2023. Davis’
commitment to social issues comes through in that film and will certainly be evident in this film. He has already provided a detailed outline and vision for the film.
Writer's Notes
Philadelphia native, writer, and producer David J. Greenberg is a professor of screenwriting at Drexel University and University of the Arts and has written
over sixty screenplays for features, shorts, and documentaries including Bonnie & Clyde: Lovers on the Run (2012). His book Screenwriting For Micro
Budget Films (Taylor & Francis, 2021) has been ranked in the Top 25 of book authority.org‘s greatest screenwriting books of all time. He is committed to
the art of storytelling for the screen and his vision for the film aligns with director Davis.
Producer's Notes
Producer Harrison G. Hayman is a longtime veteran of the food and beverage industry in Philadelphia and around the country who has seen the crisis firsthand as a volunteer and facilitator for a number of advocacy groups in the city. A committed vegetarian and activist who has come to embrace the power of film as an instrument for social change.
