The Chocolate Farmer

For ancient Mayans cocoa was as good as gold For subsistence farmer Eladio Pop his cocoa crops are the only riches he has to support his wife and 15 children As he wields his machete with ease slicing a path to his cocoa trees the small jungle plot he cultivates in southern Belize remains pristine and wild His dreams for his children to inherit the land and the traditions of their Mayan ancestors present a familiar challenge The kids feel their fathers philosophies dont fit into a global economy so theyre charting their own course Rohan Fernandos direction tenderly displays a generational shift causalities of progress in modern times and a man valiantly protecting an endangered culture Breathtaking vistas of lush rainforests contrast with the urban dystopia that pulled Pops children away from him Will one child return to carry on a waning way of life