An applied project in Environmental Communication: Exploring whether people’s eating habits can be influenced to incorporate local food through the production of a short documentary film

In order to explore how average people might be influenced to demonstrate environmentally-friendly behaviors, I researched how eco-social documentaries influence an individual’s behaviors. I produced my own film about local food to compare to this research, and then conducted a survey to see whether there is potential for my film to influence the intent of participants to change their food-buying behaviors. I found that the level of influence varies depending on the background of the participant, with a general trend of feeling motivated and educated after viewing the film. Results showed significant change of intent to make a purchase at a farmer’s market in the following month and to pay a slightly higher price for local food in the following month. My findings show that there is potential for documentary films to influence people’s individual behaviors. This means that there is potential for film to reach broad audiences and create eco-social change