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The Price of Progress

The Price of Progress is the portrait of decision making of the Food Industry. What is more important and what is the price to get it.
Within the context of urgence that determines most of the debates around the next agriculture in the European Union, the film explores the intrigues, fears, emotions, political pressures and arguments of key players like corporate lobbies, politicians, renowned scientists and investigative journalists related to the international Food Industry.
What is at stake in Food dilemmas? Power, money or health?

  • Victor Luengo
    Director
  • Victor Luengo
    Writer
  • Victor Luengo (Enero Films)
    Producer
  • Pablo de la Chica (Salon Indien Films)
    Producer
  • Bernard Url
    Key Cast
    "Executive director of EFSA"
  • Mella Frewen
    Key Cast
    "Director General FoodDrinkEurope"
  • Gilles Eric Seralini
    Key Cast
    "Molecular Biologist"
  • Michael Hansen
    Key Cast
    "Senior Staff Scientist Consumer Union of USA"
  • Jean Philipe Azoulay
    Key Cast
    "Director General ECPA European Crop Protection Agency"
  • Nathalie Moll
    Key Cast
    "Former Secretary General Europa Bio"
  • Janusz Bujnicky
    Key Cast
    "Scientific Advisor European Commission"
  • Kat Z.Guyton
    Key Cast
    "Senior Toxicologist IARC International Agency for Research of Cancer"
  • Angelika Hilbeck
    Key Cast
    "Senior Researcher of Biology and Agroecology and ex chair of ENSSER"
  • David Kirkland
    Key Cast
    "Genetic Toxicology consultant for Monsanto-Bayer"
  • Franziska Achterberg
    Key Cast
    "Eu Policy Director at Greenpeace Europe"
  • Nina Holland
    Key Cast
    "Researcher Corporate Europe Observatory"
  • Nicolas Olea
    Key Cast
    "Proffesor and Toxicology researcher"
  • Mikel Porta
    Key Cast
    "Proffesor and Toxicology researcher"
  • Carey Gillam
    Key Cast
    "Investigative journalism at Monsanto Papers affair"
  • Katryn Forgie
    Key Cast
    "Plaintiff's attorney at Monsanto Lawsuit"
  • Christopher Portier
    Key Cast
    "Expert in Carcinogenity Risk Evaluation and Environmental Health"
  • Soledad de Juan
    Key Cast
    "Antama foundation director"
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 19 minutes 31 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    October 4, 2019
  • Production Budget:
    119 EUR
  • Country of Origin:
    Spain
  • Country of Filming:
    Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom
  • Language:
    English, French, German, Spanish
  • Shooting Format:
    4k MOV mostly.
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2:39:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • FICMEC
    Garachico
    Spain
    October 11, 2020
    Canary Islands
    First Price
  • DocsMX Documentary Film Festival
    Mexico
    Mexico
    October 14, 2019
    World Premiere
    First prize of the public in the Gobal Docs section
  • SEMINCI Semana Internacional de Cine de Valladolid
    Valladolid
    Spain
    October 25, 2019
    National Premiere
    Special Mention Price
  • Raindance Film Festival
    London
    United Kingdom
    October 29, 2020
    United Kingdom
    Official Selection
  • Docville
    Leuven
    Belgium
    September 25, 2020
    Belgian Premiere
    Official Selection ConScience section
  • FIRENZE FILM FESTIVAL
    Firenze
    Italy
    September 15, 2020
    Italy
    Nominated
  • FCZ
    Zaragoza
    Spain
    November 26, 2020
    Zaragoza
    Official Competition
  • ECOCUP
    Moscow
    Russian Federation
    November 22, 2019
    Russia
    Official Competition
  • ECOZINE
    ZARAGOZA
    Spain
    Official Selection
  • LA Festival of Cinema
    Los Angeles, California
    United States
    March 25, 2021
    North America Premiere
    Finalist
  • Artic Film Festival
    Svalbard's town, Longyearbyen
    Norway
    Postponed to 2022 due to Covid...
    Finalist
Distribution Information
  • Mediawan Right
    Country: Worldwide
    Rights: All Rights
  • Salon Indien Films
    Country: Spain
    Rights: All Rights
Director Biography - Victor Luengo

VICTOR LUENGO Zaragoza, Spain 1973

I come from the field of Art. During 10 years I was represented by spanish gallery until I decided to migrate to the digital image and journalism. At the halfway stage I studied History and Anthropology. Then, I was fascinated by post-modernism theories which explain how Language shapes our everyday reality.

Since then, I have worked as journalist and filmmaker in South America, Cambodia, Madagascar and Spain. I was also editor of Magnum Spain, Seven and AFP, among others agencies. Now I earn my life in the field of Advertising working for very diverse clients and markets here in Spain.

The Price of Progress is my first film where somehow my professional career as photographer, journalist and filmmaker joins with the task of an emerging Anthropologist who is asking himself about the steps that our society are taking.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

We, as society, are used to live in continuous uncertainty in times of post-truth and deeply hyperreality. Here the truth seems to be a menu in which everyone have the right to take what they like. This could be rightful in particular issues, but when everybody’s life is at stake, to follow ambiguous criteria could be really really dangerous.

I have worked for a long time in South America. In Mendoza, Argentina, small communities are ravaged by the herbicide Glyphosate. In Eastern Bolivia, there are big monocultures grabbed from once small and indigenous lands. And there, as in Peru or in Ecuador, farmers complaint that land is too barren after decades of intensive farming.
Meanwhile in Europe, where these risks are far away, big farming corporations keep promoting a kind of endless doubt platform where Science gets closer to spectacle and marketing rather than pursuing knowledge and well being for everyone.

Quite often indictment and reform is needed. That explains why there are so many recent documentaries that report the abuses of Industry of Food.

Anyway, The Price of Progress should not be seen as an accusing finger at any particular industry. Rather, through all the debates, we aim at showing the motivations, needs and the logic of people who are performing the current food chain.

Because only with a nonaligned standpoint and adopting a neutral approach to the matter, we could see the real dimension of the difficulties we are facing.

Life and society are very complex. There are many different institutions involved in corporate world vision and behind them there are thousands of workers in their offices sharing similar arguments, which are much more familiar to everyone than we think.

That is why, in order to gain credibility, I wanted from the beginning to let everyone
expose clearly their point of views and their expectations.

Only in this way the industrial farm vision could be contrasted without prejudices with the organic farm vision or any other option.

In the next decade there is lot at stake. The eyes of the world are opening, and I believe history is giving us this moment to choose a better path. These times predict lack of resources, global warming, suffering and serious conflicts. These are well-known facts. That is why the rights and wrongs of the farming path that we take will be crucial to determine that coming future. Every effort must be made to know better how our society is and how serious are the risks we are facing in the comming decades.

Taking the good option is the key and I hope this film will helps a bit.