An evening of ritual, reflection, and inquiry into our relationship with what nourishes us.
With a Korean-Inspired Tea Ceremony and the award-winning short film Scenes in a Coq au Vin, the evening explores food and drink as both sustenance and sacred connection. Includes a Q&A with Canadian filmmaker Geordie Trifa.
Friday, November 7, 9:00pm-10:30pm, Shambhala Hall (Selkirk College), Nelson, BC, MAP
THE FILM
Scenes In a Coq Au Vin
(2024, Canada, 14min)
In Southern France, culinary enthusiasts gather at the famed retreat of internationally renowned chef and food educator Charles X Michel.
‘Scenes In a Coq Au Vin’ unfolds against the backdrop of a timeless tradition—the sacrifice of a rooster in making an ancestral Coq Au Vin. As the blade meets feathers, the film delves into our modern disconnect with the origins of our food. The sacrifice, once a communal act, now stands as a potent reminder of our collective separation from the sources of our nourishment. ‘Scenes In a Coq au Vin is more than a culinary revelation—it’s a meditation on the essence of life, death, and the profound connection we’ve lost in our modern pursuit of convenience.
ABOUT THE DIRECTOR: Geordie Trifa is an award-winning director and producer. He is currently directing the Pacific episode of the documentary series Life on the Edge (PBS,CBC,ARTE.) His credits include the Cities episode of the documentary series Shared Planet (CBC, ARTE, PBS) and the CBC films Pandemic Elementary and Black Rock.
AWARDS: Best Short Film – Ceres Food Film Festival 2024
THE RITUAL
TEA AS PRESENCE: A KOREAN-INSPIRED CEREMONY
Korean-Inspired Tea Ceremony with WATER OVER LEAVES: A quiet, grounding experience of presence through tea. Mélanie Pulla weaves the ethos of Korean darye with mindful ritual, inviting guests to slow down, sip with intention, and reconnect with the simple sacred practice of pouring hot water over tea leaves.
Mélanie Pulla is an herbalist and artisan tea maker based in Nelson, BC, and the founder of Water Over Leaves. Her work cultivates quiet moments of stillness where tea becomes a practice of presence. Mélanie’s path began in childhood ritual, unfolded through years of clinical herbal study (California School of Herbal Studies; Southwest School of Botanical Medicine; BSc in Wellness & Alternative Medicine), and came into focus while studying Korean tea ceremony (darye) and visiting tea houses and gardens in South Korea, Japan, and China. She integrates Korean-inspired tea ceremonies and herbal tea rituals with mindful presence to create experiences that are both refined and deeply human. Through intimate ceremonies, tastings, and hand-crafted blends, Mélanie invites guests to pause, breathe, and return to the quiet essence of tea: water, leaves, and stillness.
THE INQUIRY
Through gentle group exercises, we’ll explore what it means to honor food as sacred. Together, we’ll dream of ways to bring reverence back to our tables, our homes, our communities. It will be a space to listen, remember, and imagine a more intimate relationship with what nourishes us.
