The Local Oyster Stout Premieres Online
Baltimore, MD (January 9th, 2019)—The Local Oyster Stout, an 8-minute short documentary about the collaboration between a brewery, an oyster farm, and a shucker that led to Maryland’s first farm-to-table oyster stout beer, will premiere Monday, January 14th, 2019, at 9 am EST at the following link: https://vimeo.com/310463755
The short film chronicles the historical pairing of oysters and stouts, specifically through photographs and advertising from the Guinness Brewery’s Storehouse archives, before turning its attention to a collaborative approach to the oyster stout beer style taking place in Baltimore, MD.
Brewed by Waverly Brewing Company, in collaboration with True Chesapeake Oyster Company and The Local Oyster restaurant, the Local Oyster Stout is Maryland’s first beer to source its oysters entirely from within the state, a fact recognized by Sen. Ben Cardin on Opening Day for the Baltimore Orioles in 2016.[1]
Such practices chart a future for sustainability in the Chesapeake Bay through the promotion of ethical aquaculture actively contributing to the health of the watershed, alongside innovative strategies to bring small businesses together.
Directed and produced by Sincerely Visual, a video collective of Baltimore filmmakers Mark Burchick, Jena Richardson, and Kyle Deitz, The Local Oyster Stout premiered at the Life Sciences Film Festival in the Czech Republic, followed by an Opening Night Screening for the Water Docs Film Festival in Toronto, Canada, regional recognition at the Philadelphia Environmental Film Festival and Chesapeake Film Festival, and which concluded its festival run at the British Documentary Film Festival in London, England this past December.
“The Local Oyster Stout hopes to bridge our passion for life on the water and drinking craft beer into a captivating story to share with those who care about the environment,” says Mark Burchick, co-director on the film. “We couldn’t have made this film without that a-ha moment, hanging out at Waverly Brewing Company, looking up at the chalkboard, and seeing a beer with live oysters in it! We had to tell its story.”
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Mark Burchick is a freelance filmmaker, owner of Sincerely Visual, and Multimedia Technician for Towson University. Not only did he shuck his first oyster during the making of this film, but he also had to visit his first emergency room after burying the shucking knife into his left hand.
Jena Richardson is a Baltimore-based filmmaker currently studying for her MFA at Vermont College of Fine Arts, an artist-in-residence at Towson University, and a self-professed foodie. Her work has taken her from the sets of award winning television and films all the way to the Obama White House. Her previous film “Dear Country,” which covered the historic Women’s March of 2017, was recognized in film festivals at home and internationally.
[1] https://www.brewersassociation.org/current-issues/u-s-senator-cardin-celebrates-new-beer-release-local-brewery/