A two-minute film called “Back to the Start” has been produced by Denver-based Chipotle Mexican Grill about a farmer’s journey to sustainable farming and featuring family farming advocate Willie Nelson.
Chipotle said today that the film, directed by London-based Johnny Kelly, will appear in about 5,700 movie theater screens beginning in September in advance of feature films.
The goal is to educate consumers about “Chipotle’s favored farming methods,” according to the Colorado company.
The film demonstrates the differences between industrial farming and more sustainable methods.
Chipotle says the film’s subject matter is enhanced by Nelson’s cover of the Coldplay song “The Scientist.”
The film follows the story of a farmer whose family farm has evolved over time into a factory farm.
In a moment of self-reflection, the farmer realizes that his “animal factory” is not consistent with his vision for a farm.
“We produced this film to help illustrate the choices people face in deciding what to eat, and hope that it will encourage people to choose food that is raised with respect for the land, animals and the farmers that produce it,” said Steve Ells, founder and chairman of Chipotle.
Chipotle says that as the song lyrics suggest, the farmer goes back to the start by ridding his farm of its factory qualities and returning to more sustainable farming methods.
“We have a tremendous amount of respect for Willie Nelson, both as a musician and for his extraordinary efforts to support family farming,” said Ells.Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com.
