In May 2016, The Coffee Man film made its world premiere. The movie has since been screened 192 times in 37 countries, and counting.
Film Director Jeff Hann and Producer Roland Fraval are happy to announce the film will be available for digital download from 30 November via iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, Vimeo and direct via thecoffeemanfilm.com
Pre-sale purchase of the film will be available from November 18 on iTunes at a discount of 25 per cent.
For true coffee lovers a special “Coffee Geek Edition” with deleted scenes, extended interviews and bonus content will be available only at www.thecoffeemanfilm.com.
“It’s been really special to see coffee specialists embrace this film, but also those removed from the coffee world. It’s a universal story that people have gravitated too,” Roland says. “When we started all we wanted to do was create something inspirational, and we’re proud when people tell us it is.”
The Coffee Man documentary explores the world of specialty coffee and the lengths 2015 Australian Barista Champion Sasa Sestic goes to for coffee nirvana. It tracks Sasa’s life from his origins in war-torn Yugoslavia to his entry to the world of specialty coffee and quest for the best coffee through Ethiopia, Honduras and Colombia. The film is full of suspense and drama and will leave you on the edge of your seat – even if you know the result of the 2015 World Barista Championship (WBC).
“I think the moment the film’s direction changed was when Sasa won the Australian Barista Championship. Jeff and I hadn’t encountered the barista competition to be main focus of the film, but the concept just worked and suddenly our original film idea for direct trade was sidelined and Sasa became our star,” he says.
Since premiering six months ago, The Coffee Man has screened around the globe to overwhelmingly positive reviews, won Best Australian Documentary at the Melbourne Documentary Film Festival, and has been translated in more than 15 languages.
“Its success has exceeded our expectations. We’ve toured the world with Sasa to promote this film. He’s been inundated with selfies, red carpets have been laid out, and we’ve screened the film in some incredible places,” Roland says.
Such places include Augusta, the most western point of Australia where people drove one and a half hours to see the film; a sold out 400-seat historic theatre in Singapore; a rooftop building in Hawaii, a church in Budapest, and lots of small cafés with hundreds of people crammed in.
“The screenings really united a community of likeminded coffee lovers. We had one guy in Sawtell, a small country town in central NSW who owned a coffee van and heard about the film. He ended up hosting a sold out screening of 95 people in the town’s small cinema,” Roland says.
Roland is in research for his next ‘star in the making’, but for now, he’s excited to see the film make its digital debut.
“It’s a great Christmas pressie and just a great celebration of an incredible barista and his story.” Roland says.
For those in Brisbane still keen to see the film, Extraction Artisan Coffee will be screening the film on 29 November.
For more information visit www.thecoffeemanfilm.com or www.facebook.com/thecoffeemanfilm