Up until a couple years ago, I never drank coffee. That is until Sam James came along and everything changed.  Sam is really into coffee and always has an interesting story to tell.  I could go into more detail about these stories, or the amazing reviews and the barista awards he has won, but instead I recommend you take a trip to Sam James Coffee Bar to hear and see for yourself.

Sam James Coffee Bar is a great small space with knowledgeable baristas and quality product. Broken skate deck?  They even have a skate team and hard goods for sale.

Tried to find a youtube clip of Sam skating – no dice
Check out 1 of 3 video clips of Sam James (just learned imovie too)

Last week, just before class, I met up with Allison Johnston, the co-owner of The Spice Trader to talk about… SPICES.

I’ve always thought I was well-versed in the spice area, with shaking a self-made mix on my popcorn and whatever else. Little did I know, almost everything I own should be thrown out.

… maybe I actually am a good cook that’s just in need of some fresh spice.

The Spice Trader is a great owner run shop located on Queen Street.  Heavily stocked with organic fresh herbs and spices, alongside wild harvested versions. 

Take a look at the video as Allison talks about the importance of  fresh spices.  If you have any questions or want to know more, I would suggest checking out The Spice Trader.

Sound in film is not something I normally think about when I watch movies, but lately I am realizing how crucial this one aspect is.

Majority of the music I grew up with came from skateboard movies.  My favourite skate parts to this day always had an amazing song to go along with it.  I could not imagine a skateboard video without music.

Just having that perfect song attached to a scene makes the film (or in my case, a skateboard part).

This led me to finding someone to talk about sound and TV.

Rachel McLean is a field audio mixer and has worked on productions such as Project Runway Canada, Instant Beauty and the new sow Big Voice.  She loves working in the reality television area, where unfolding the key stories relies heavily on ((audio)).

Check out a video clip with Rachel

(I’m sure she wants to fix the sound on this!)

Zane Caplansky, the owner of Caplansky’s Deli,  is an amazingly gracious person to talk to. Despite being busy with Toronto’s very delicious and very hyped smoked meat restaurant, he still agreed without hesitation to an interview with Film Foodie and to discuss the art of food.  Take a look at the first clip with Zane Caplansky below.

Want to know more about Caplansky’s?

Just google ‘Caplansky’ or read few of the many aricles below!

The Star

Toronto Sun

Urban Spoon 

Now

I wanted to find out more about music videos and maybe see what the differences are compared to the film industry.

Scott Cudmore directs music video for bands such as Timbre Timbre and Great Lake Swimmers.  

Watch here as he talks about music videos and his new show on aux.tv, Camera Music <—— click to watch his show!

Stopped by Suspect Video last week and talked to Chris Colohan.  Anyone that knows Chris would agree that he is ‘top notch’.  He is always there to help out and has helped me out in the past with bouncing the door at shows.  Now he is where I go for motorcycle advice, not that I have one.

Gareth Scales, editor for Cooking With Stella, talks about editing the film India and Indian Food.

Check out the trailer he edited from his company Trailmix.

It only seems fitting that the first blog post is about Indian food and Little India.

Around the time I was discussing this blog at work, I found on the web, a walking tour of Little India form Arvinda’s Indian Cooking Classes.

Checked it out and would recommend it to anyone that wants to taste amazing south Indian Food and visit one of a few Little India Neighborhoods in North America.  Take a look at the photos!

Arvindas Indian Cooking Classes started in  the early nineties offering hands experience specializing in various regional cooking and home style cooking.

The walking tour started at the  vegetarian Indian restaurant Udupi Palace.

What are the six tastes in every Indian meal?

It’s me, Lyndsey Westfall, sharing my experiences of the food and film industries through interviews and photos.

Why am I doing this?

Currently, I work part time for an independent film company helping with various promotional, Festival and marketing activities for the feature film COOKING WITH STELLA.  The film is about a Canadian diplomat in India, with a scheming in-house cooking guru. It’s directed by Dilip Mehta and co written by Dilip Mehta and his sister Deepa Mehta.

Help me out and send me some ideas of who to interview!