VEGUCATED Cleveland Premier

#vegucated,

Went with my husband to our first Meetup last night.  (www.meetup.com)  Gotta say, I was a little intimidated.  The Meetup was the Cleveland Vegetarian Meetup group.  As we were leaving home, I told my husband not to bring our leather jackets for fear of having fake blood thrown on us or something!  I also thought maybe I was going to have to “mingle” and make a lot of small talk. I shouldn’t have worried.  It was like going to any movie.  Except that this was an event!  It was put on by the Cleveland Animal Rights Alliance at the Big Dog Theater in Coventry Village, OH.  Various local restaurants had vegan samples of pudding, chocolate chip cookies, chocolates, pesto pizza, salad along with lots of brochures and coupons.  The audience was a mix of vegan and veg-curious.  All “normal” looking people–not hippies as one might think.  Normal, like us-ha!  My husband is actually visible in the upper balcony.

The movie Vegucated is a feature-length documentary that follows three meat- and cheese-loving New Yorkers who agree to adopt a vegan diet for six weeks.  Part sociological experiment, part science class, and part adventure story, Vegucated showcases the rapid and at times comedic evolution of three people who share one journey.  It was very funny.  The 3 characters were so likeable.  The audience was laughing out loud a lot of the time.  Afterwards, the writer/director/editor Marisa Miller Wolfson did a Q&A with the audience.  The whole evening was fun.  I wish everyone would see it and get Vegucated!  You can rent it digitally on the website http://www.getvegucated.com for $3.99.

Best documentary at Toronto Independent Film Festival
Chris Award for best educational film at the Columbus International Film & Video Festival
Best food issue film at the Cinema Verde Environmental Film & Arts Festival