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SFA Greenhouse: Growing Stories Behind the Food
The Southern Foodways Alliance documents, studies and celebrates the diverse food cultures of the changing American South. Central to this mission is our initiative to collect the stories behind the food. The SFA Greenhouse is our newest effort to gather these tales.
There are stories waiting to be told everywhere: by the heirloom vegetable farmer at the neighborhood market, by the bartender at your favorite watering hole, or by the cook who has fed generations at Wednesday night church suppers. We realize that locals know best where to find these stories, and many of you are already working collectors. We would like to include your collections with our own, and thus we invite you to our greenhouse.
What’s the SFA Greenhouse? It’s small budget initiative geared to assist collectors in documenting the food stories in their local areas, with an emphasis on film and multi-media projects. To apply for SFA Greenhouse funds, please send us a letter describing your project, its importance, relevant information about costs and timetables for completion, as well examples of previous work or work already completed in support of your proposed project. Please send your letter to the SFA's oral historian, Amy Evans Streeter, at acevans@olemiss.edu. And please know that when we talk of money, we’re talking small potatoes, not monster rutabagas.
Deadline for Proposals: August 15 (postmark)
Notification: September 15
Production Schedule: Supported projects are to be completed within one year of the receipt of funds
We have a few guidelines to help you decide if your project is right for our Greenhouse:
Is yours a food story? Not all food stories happen in a kitchen. Some begin in the field, others at the table. There are food stories in classrooms and offices, churches and local festivals. And good food stories are rarely just about the food. The best interviews use food as a way to tell a larger story, one about history and family and community.
Is your story local? We believe that locals best know their communities. And we believe that there is value in collecting local history. We want to fund homegrown projects by people in their own communities. There’s a cost savings when we talk about travel and lodging, sure, but it’s also a way that we can guarantee the best local stories.
If you have a local story that needs to be shared, by way of film and multi-media projects, we encourage you to contact us and submit your project for consideration by our Greenhouse.
Please email acevans@olemiss.edu for inquiries.
• Hot-Dogopolis Watch this film
An SFA Greenhouse film by Eric Feldman by and Leyla Modirzadeh. Learn the story of the Greek community in Birmingham, Alabama, and see a part of their restaurant legacy in the lunch stands that make Birmingham a great Southern city for a hot dog.
• Buford HWY - A Home Away From Home Watch this slideshow
An SFA Greenhouse multi-media project by Rachel Bailey. Learn the story of Khanh Nguyen, Vietnamese refugee and owner of Saigon Deli along Buford HWY in Atlanta, Georgia, and get a glimpse into the culinary culture of what is arguably the South's oldest and most diverse international corridor.
