Best of Fest Encore Screening
Samuel-Ali Mirpoorian’s urgent and intimate documentary looks at four multigenerational American farming families, including in Minnesota, wrestling with the various farm stressors, policies and politics farmers must maneuver to survive, connecting the dots between mental health, industrialization, food production and climate change.
Farming has been a struggle throughout history. But the life of a farmer is probably more challenging now than ever before–adding to weather and blight and economic hardships comes the vast fight against corporate farming, the opioid crisis, and a rise in mental health crises. With exceptional access to four farming families in the Midwest, Greener Pastures is a stunning cinematic document that captures day-to-day lives of perseverance, patience and determination with nothing less than the future of farming in America at stake.
Director Biography
Samuel-Ali Mirpoorian is an Iranian filmmaker who studied at Indiana University. His debut documentary short, “Little Warriors” (2017) won the Grand Prize Winner at the Heartland Film Festival in Indianapolis and his second short documentary “Sonnie” won awards at over 40 film festivals. Greener Pastures (2023) is his debut feature documentary.