The Farm Project is creating a viable local alternative to big food by arming a new generation of sustainable, organic farmers with technology, capital, and information, and by reconnecting communities to fresh, locally grown food to restore the health of our bodies and our planet.
The Farm Project: The series
Food, travel, activism -an environmental series for a new generation.
Your food is not what you think. You might be horrified by where it comes from. Follow a few inspirational change-makers who have taken matters into their own hands in the hopes of starting a chain reaction – a “food revolution”– to correct a ruinous course.
The Farm Project follows the transformation of the urban farm into a revolutionary model, from which a movement of shared knowledge and food activism can grow. Actress Zooey Deschanel and her husband, film producer and entrepreneur Jacob Pechenik, lead this particular charge in urban farming and efficient land use. The Farm Project endeavors to renew a sense of connection between Americans and fresh, natural ingredients and dispels the perception that we are too busy to cook healthy, local food for ourselves.
Zooey Deschanel
Zooey is a key character in the series, drawing public attention to the issues as she questions them herself. In the first episode of the series, she will introduce the story and her personal connection to the project - an honest, intimate episode that invites the audience to connect with her as a mother and, later, a food activist. In the following episodes, we will shift our focus to other key characters of the story, but Zooey will remain the narrator of the story and an active participant in the unfolding drama. We’ll witness her balancing her LA Life as a successful actress and mother with her visits to the farm in Austin and her role as spokesperson for this movement around the country.
SAMPLE EPISODES
101 MOTHER KNOWS BEST
Pregnant with their second child, Zooey Deschanel and Jacob Pechenik worry about what Zooey eats and how it will impact her health, her working career, and the health of their babies.
LOCATIONS: Los Angeles
CHARACTERS: Zooey & Jacob
Director's Notes: Episode one introduces the story and the issues from Zooey's POV in a relatable and intimate way and establishes an emotional connection with the audience.
118 THE ENEMY AT THE GATES
As the government eases energy and food regulations, a new generation of changemakers have taken matters into their own hands in the hopes of starting a chain reaction to correct a ruinous course. In the island of Kauai in Hawaii, young activists fight Monsanto’s plans to open Hawaii’s largest farm.
Characters: Local activists, Jacob
Locations: Kauai
Director's Notes: The Enemy At The Gates is an action driven episode with a community resisting a big corporation in Hawaii. Jacob reaches out to local activists to learn more about the issues before testing the The Farm Project’s strength with a public awareness campaign. The campaign is a call to action for communities around the world to send us their Monsanto stories.
121 COMMON GROUND
Millennials’ lifestyles are changing the way we eat. Knowledge that was previously passed down within farming communities to each new farming generation can now be collected and deconstructed cross-culturally. The rapid, global exchange of information forms a link between the new generation of consumers and their farmers, creating healthy trends that are transforming the more vibrants of parts of our cities.
Characters: Zooey (narrator), Various Millennials
Locations: Brooklyn, Berlin, Tokyo, Madrid.
Director's Notes: Episode 21 is a good example of the lifestyle potential of the series. Here we take viewers on a quick tour of some of the more vibrant cities in the world while revealing a direct link between millennial culture and farming.
LOCATIONS
MULTI-PLATFORM STRATEGY
This series has been designed as a multi-platform experience. Our goal is to create as much awareness as possible and to energize and mobilize an already existing global movement.
DIGITAL DISTRIBUTION & SOCIAL MEDIA
This series has been designed to be consumed and shared digitally. Every episode has a self-contained narrative and the potential to go viral by strategically tapping into unique niche audiences. Along with each episode, we'll deliver supporting content to be distributed through social media and the various Time Inc digital properties.
Articles, high quality images, and short video pieces about food and farming along with interviews with top famers, chefs, celebrities and experts.
Call to action campaign powered by Zooey's social capital to request viewer generated content (Twitter, YouTube).
Cooking with Zooey (social media/HelloGiggles).
Quick and fun food and farming facts (under 60 seconds for social media).
BTS videos and images (Snapchat, Facebook, Instagram,etc).
DIGITAL FIRST
Another part of our strategy is to create a new unscripted niche around farming and healthy living. We're currently developing a large portfolio of unscripted, documentary, and lifestyle content and will be ready to deliver fresh new content once we create the demand for it. Our plan is to distribute digitally first with the option for US and foreign broadcast or SVOD distribution.
AN AWARD-WINNING TEAM
Film Producer and entrepreneur Jacob Pechenik (CEO, Venture Forth Productions) and Actress Zooey Deschanel are the Executive Producers of The Farm Project. This husband-and-wife producing team has partnered with director Mario Troncoso who will spearhead this project. For this production, they have assembled a vibrant, diverse and extremely talented team to create a stunning and powerful series.