David Gelb, the acclaimed director of Jiro Dreams of Sushi, Chef’s Table and Street Food has released a five-minute documentary about Singaporean chicken rice, shot on a phone.
The director, known for his sweeping high-definition close-ups of food, used an iPhone 13 Pro to shoot the documentary called Poached, all about Singapore's iconic Hainanese chicken rice.
As you would expect, the short film is visually rich and colourful, with the famed hawker-sold chicken rice dish getting the full Gelb treatment, elevating it to high gastronomy. But there is more to it than just food shots, as it explores the rivalry between two famous Maxwell Food Centre stalls: Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice and Ah Tai Hainanese Chicken Rice.
Saving Singapore's Heritage Cuisine
“I think that throughout all of my work, from Jiro to Chef's Table and Street Food on Netflix and now to Poached with Apple and iPhone, it's really about following characters who are obsessed, who are passionate about what they do,” Gelb told CNA Lifestyle. “And that is an infectious quality. It's something that is so exciting and entertaining to watch. And then when you have that kind of character plus delicious food it's really a winning kind of recipe. It's something that I've applied through all of my work.”
