Documentary screening at UMaine explores prison food reform and renewal
Orono, Maine — University of Maine Cooperative Extension and UMaine’s Innovative Media Research and Commercialization Center (IMRC) will host a screening of the documentary Seeds of Change: Breaking Free from the Prison Food System from 6:30–8 p.m. on Monday, October 27 at the IMRC building, 5 Hilltop Road, Orono. Visitor parking can be found on Long Road by Jenness Hall.
Filmed over two years, Seeds of Change follows Maine organic farmer Mark McBrine and incarcerated men at a five-acre prison garden as they cultivate more than just crops. The film and panel discussion will explore the role of organic agriculture in reshaping food systems and restoring dignity, purpose and well-being within correctional settings. A post-screening discussion will include McBrine and film producer Maximillian Armstrong.
The event is free and open to the public. No registration is required. For more information or to request a reasonable accommodation, contact Kate Garland at 207.942.7396 or katherine.garland@maine.edu.
The event is part of the DownEast Visions: A Maine-Based Film and Dialogue Series and is supported in part by the Cultural Affairs/Distinguished Lecture Series Fund with additional funding from the Alton Fund ’38 and the Adelaide Hamm Campus Activity Fund. The program is also supported in part by UMaine Extension’s Harvest for Hunger Program.
University of Maine Cooperative Extension
As a trusted resource for over 100 years, Extension has supported UMaine’s land and sea grant public education role by conducting community-driven, research-based programs in every Maine county. UMaine Extension seeks to build thriving communities and grow the food-based economy, focusing on aspects from production and processing to nutrition, food safety and food security. Extension also conducts the most successful out-of-school youth educational program in Maine through 4-H, which offers hands-on projects in areas like health, science, agriculture and civic engagement, and creates a positive environment where participants are encouraged to take on proactive leadership roles.