Age of the Farmer

A film about the importance of heirloom seeds to the agriculture of the world, focusing on seed keepers and activists from around the world.

At the edge of Shirahama, a coastal tourist town in Japan, an ageing scientist works to unlock the biological secret of immortality held in the life cycle of a tiny jellyfish. At a temple in Kyoto, a Zen priest contemplates the metaphysical immortality held within a single breath. Some years ago, filmmaker Spencer Macdonald read an article in The New York Times titled "Can a Jellyfish Unlock the Secret of Immortality?" by Nathaniel Rich. Comprehensive and insightful, the article is compelling not least for its potential to deliver a revelation that defies one of life’s most fundamental truths; that we all live then die. It also shines a light on the arrogance of the anthropocene, the evolving landscape of Shirahama, and a detailed insight into the life and work of the charming and fervently curious Dr. Shin Kubota, a warm and eccentric scientist determined to harness the biological secrets of a jellyfish for humanity.

A self-isolated young human known as "James" delves into the hidden world of microscopic organisms, forging a tender connection with these nearly invisible creatures and developing a massive online following, as he seeks to understand his own place in the cosmos and accept the scars of his past.