LAVA Film Night: Rising River’s Edge

Rising River’s Edge examines the plight of the food systems in Franklin County in the face of a changing and unpredictable climate. Since 2023, the county has experienced heavy rains, floods, late frosts, April snowfalls and drought. The extreme changes in weather patterns and unpredictability of forecasts wreaks havoc on our food systems and farms. This is in the face of the fact that 50% of Franklin County’s population faces food insecurity issues. Franklin County is also the poorest, most rural and disparate county in Massachusetts.

Our team consists of filmmakers and producers Hugh Finnerty, Clara Witty, Matthew Barlow and Rebecca Rideout, who interviewed local farmers in Franklin County, documented their struggles and their resiliency in planning for this unpredictable new normal. We also trace this new normal down through the local food systems to restaurants and consumers. Featured farms in the film are Clark Brothers Orchards of Ashfield, MA; Just Roots of Greenfield, MA; and Red Fire Farm of Montague and Granby, MA. A local restaurateur is also featured, Stone Soup Cafe in Greenfield, a pay-what-you-can cafe.

In the film the farmers discuss their challenges navigating extreme and unpredictable weather. We see that late frosts contribute to new diseases plaguing apple trees, major floods wiped out fields and with the floods came major crop loss. The farms have not been able to recover swiftly, and the damage from one year continues into the next. Buying local supports local farms, and whether it’s directly from the farm stand or a farmer’s market, the money from buying local stays in the community and also contributes to a healthier community.

Click here for more information: https://thelavacenter.org/risingriversedge/

Funding for this film was provided by MassHumanities via the Massachusetts Cultural Council, Greening Greenfield and The LAVA Center.

$1-5 suggested donation