Hamptons Doc Fest is celebrating Mother’s Day by launching a virtual screening of Her Name Is Chef, a new documentary that explores changing gender roles in restaurant kitchens and the struggle women face rising to the title of Chef. The film will be available to view via the Doc Fest website from Sunday, May 9 through Sunday, May 23.
“[Her Name Is Chef] showcases the inspiring stories of six talented females who broke down the barriers of the male-dominated restaurant industry to earn the title of Chef,” noted Jacqui Lofaro, Doc Fest Founder/Executive Director. “Meet these ‘sheroes’ of the kitchen for Mothers Day.”
Directed by Peter Ferriero, the documentary features Top Chef fan favorite Fatima Ali, who tragically passed away in January 2019 at the age of 29 from Ewing’s sarcoma; Esther Choi, who runs a trio of Korean restaurants in New York City; Elizabeth Falkner, a world-renowned chef that has helmed some of the country’s top kitchens; Juliet Masters, executive chef of The Edge in Harlem; Caroline Schiff, an executive pastry chef and food entrepreneur; and Hillary Sterling, who runs Vic’s in New York City, an eatery that focuses on simple Italian cooking and super-local ingredients. Chef Leia Gaccione, who owns a duo of hotspots in New Jersey, hosts.
Ferriero, who told Good Morning America the film was “about hope, inspiration and overcoming adversity,” was inspired to create Her Name Is Chef after witnessing first-hand how the owner of a female-owned restaurant in New Jersey was finding it challenging to prove herself to her male coworkers.
“The film has meant so many things to me as I was making it,” he also told GMA. “In the end it’s about sharing chef Fatima Ali’s story, her legacy and even more to spread her message ‘to not wait, and go for your dreams now.'”
The online screening is $12.
For more information, visit www.hamptonsdocfest.com.