HANCEVILLE – “The Starfish Throwers” has been called “the most heartwarming film of 2014” by The Huffington Post, and was shown last Thursday at Wallace State Community College’s Burrow Center for the Fine and Performing Arts. The film is part of the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers, and was sponsored by South Arts and presented by The Evelyn Burrow Museum.
Filmmaker Jesse Roesler follows a five-star chef, Narayanan Krishnan, in India who quits his job to deliver fresh meals to hundreds of homeless people every day of the year. He also follows a sixth-grader named Katie Stagliano who started a movement to provide fresh vegetables to food banks and others in need; and a retired middle school teacher, Allan Law, from Minneapolis who sacrifices so much to deliver thousands of sandwiches each night to those in need.
The movie is a documentary about three very different people working toward the same goal – feeding the hungry in their communities. “The Starfish Throwers” highlights the common effort of these individuals to feed the hungry around the world.
“The experience has been both humbling and unforgettable,” Roesler wrote on the film’s website.
“Seeing them reject cynicism and transcend mass apathy with every act of kindness they committed reminded me of the lost idealism of youth. While many of us have put aside some of those innocent dreams of changing the world and making a difference, I believe sharing these stories will help us all to rediscover our own potential to affect positive change.”
The film has earned many awards, including Best Overall Film and Best Documentary at the 2014 Myrtle Beach Film Festival; the Jury and Audience awards for Best Documentary at the Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival; the Human Spirit Award at the Nashville Film Festival; and the Audience Award in the Global Health Competition at the Cleveland International Film Festival.
For more information about the film and the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Films, visit WallaceState.edu/artscalendar, www.SouthArts.org or TheStarfishThrowers.com.
For more information about The Evelyn Burrow Museum, visit BurrowMuseum.org or call 256-352-8457.
