This comes in the wake of the project’s imminent expansion, with the laneway set to find a larger and more permanent home in the CBD this month.

Documentary filmmaker Jordan Osmond has made a four-minute short showcasing the local laneway project and interviewing its founder Lou Ridsdale.

WATCH THE FILM HERE:

Osmond said he was inspired to make a film about the Food is Free laneway because of its role in helping reconnect people with their food and with their local community.

He said he hoped the film inspired others to create their own Food is Free projects.

“There are a lot of problems in the world and I think it’s very easy to be overwhelmed and to feel hopeless about not being able to make a difference,” he said.

“The Food is Free laneway gives an example of a simple and really effective thing people can do to reconnect with their food and their local community.”

The founder of Happen Films, Osmond’s YouTube channel focuses on permaculture, tiny houses, voluntary simplicity and sustainable living.

“I love filmmaking because it gives me the ability to share ideas with anyone in the world and I hope to educate and inspire people to make change in their own lives towards a more sustainable and better way of life,” he said.

Food is Free is a global community project where people grow their own food and share it among themselves. 

After 12 months, the Ballarat laneway is now expanding, with a second presence set for the south-easterly corner of the Western Oval.

Ms Ridsdale said the expansion was a giant step forward in the promotion of the global Food is Free movement and within Ballarat itself.

“This will help ensure food equity and food security for all Ballarat citizens and visitors,” she said.

“Personally I’m really looking forward to continually fostering a greener, and more tight-knit community in the Redan and Ballarat CBD district.”

Ms Ridsdale said moving the site to a larger space would make it more visible and would give the initiative a real permanency.

She said the current laneway at the corner of Ripon Street South and Warrior Place would retain the initiative’s gardening component with seeds, seedlings, compost, and worm farms, while the new space would allow more room for people to drop-off and collect fresh food.

“Given how quickly the laneway has expanded in only one year, it is timely to move across to the oval, especially with Summer harvests looming. The move will allow space for many more people to visit us,” Ms Ridsdale said.

“With the future of Food Is Free in this town now secured, l am excited to start fleshing out my ideas for Food Is Free Ballarat for it to grow many other tentacles.”

For more information, visit the Ballarat project’s Facebook Page.

For more information about Happen Films, visit www.happenfilms.com