FINDING MEANINGFUL FOOD Documentary to Mark Jonathan Cerullo's Film Debut
The film traces Harriet V. Kuhnlein's research across 80 countries documenting Indigenous food traditions.
Jonathan Stuart Cerullo, a director, choreographer and producer with more than four decades of experience in theatre and live entertainment, is set to make his documentary debut with FINDING MEANINGFUL FOOD ~ A VIDEO MEMOIR BY HARRIET V. KUHNLEIN. The film, which will serve as Cerullo's first project as director and executive producer, is scheduled to premiere online to coincide with Harriet V. Kuhnlein's birthday. It chronicles the life and career of Kuhnlein, a researcher, educator and advocate whose work took her to 80 countries documenting traditional Indigenous food systems and their connection to nutrition, health and human rights.
The film, premiering online August 14, 2026, on the occasion of Harriet V. Kuhnlein's birthday, celebrates the extraordinary life and career of a woman whose pioneering work helped change the global conversation surrounding Indigenous Peoples, traditional foods, nutrition, health and human rights.
From Farming Roots to an International Legacy
Born from humble farming roots, Harriet V. Kuhnlein went on to become an internationally respected researcher, educator and advocate whose life's work centered on a fundamental belief: food is far more than nourishment—it is culture, identity, family, tradition and a connection to the land.
Throughout her remarkable career, Kuhnlein worked with Indigenous communities around the world, traveling to 80 countries documenting traditional food systems and bringing Indigenous knowledge and perspectives into international conversations about nutrition, health and sustainability.
Her work helped illuminate the importance of protecting traditional foods and Indigenous knowledge while addressing the nutritional challenges facing Indigenous communities.
Finding Meaningful Food places that extraordinary professional legacy alongside the personal story of the woman who lived it.
The documentary explores Kuhnlein's childhood, family, marriages, relationships, challenges, resilience and decades of advocacy, revealing the person behind the accomplishments and the passion that drove her life's work.
From Broadway to Documentary
For Cerullo, Finding Meaningful Food represents a natural evolution of a career devoted to storytelling.
His more than four decades in entertainment have encompassed Broadway, Off-Broadway, national and international tours, film, television, concerts, cabaret and circus arts. As a director, choreographer and producer, Cerullo has worked across genres and mediums, always with an emphasis on character, emotion and the power of a story to connect with an audience.
His credits include work associated with Broadway productions such as Say Goodnight, Gracie, Band in Berlin, Anna Karenina, The Three Musketeers and Legs Diamond, national tours of Cats and Bob Fosse's Sweet Charity as well as extensive Off-Broadway, concert and live-event work.
He is also the founder of JSCTheatricals, LLC, through which he has produced and executive produced theatrical and special-event projects including Finding Meaningful Food.
Now, for the first time, Cerullo turns his creative lens toward documentary filmmaking.
Rather than presenting Kuhnlein simply as an academic or advocate, Cerullo's film seeks to capture the whole woman, her Pennsylvania Dutch beginnings, her relationships, her academic career, her discoveries and the extraordinary journey that took her from a farming childhood to an international platform.
A Legacy Worth Remembering
At its heart, Finding Meaningful Food is a film about legacy.
It asks what happens when the foods that sustain us are also the foods that preserve our history—and what is lost when traditional knowledge, foodways and cultural connections disappear.
Through Harriet Kuhnlein's life, the film offers a deeply personal perspective on a much larger global story: the enduring relationship between food, family, culture, health and identity.
The result is both a portrait of an extraordinary woman and a celebration of a lifetime devoted to making the world healthier by helping people reconnect with the foods, traditions and knowledge that have sustained Indigenous communities for generations.
World Premiere
Finding Meaningful Food: A Video Memoir by Harriet V. Kuhnlein will have its World Premiere online August 14, 2026, celebrating Harriet V. Kuhnlein's birthday.
The film will be presented through Harriet Kuhnlein's official Finding Meaningful Food YouTube channel, allowing audiences around the world to experience her story and celebrate her extraordinary legacy.
This is free to the public.
About the Film
Title: Finding Meaningful Food ~ A Video Memoir by Harriet V. Kuhnlein
Genre: Documentary
Director: Jonathan Stuart Cerullo
Executive Producer: Jonathan Stuart Cerullo
Subject: Harriet V. Kuhnlein
World Premiere: August 14, 2026
About Jonathan Stuart Cerullo
Jonathan Stuart Cerullo is an award-winning director, choreographer and executive producer whose career spans more than 40 years in Broadway, Off-Broadway, national and international theatre, film, television, concerts, cabaret and circus arts.
His work has included Broadway productions, national tours, international productions, original theatrical works, concerts and large-scale special events. He is the founder of JSCTheatricals, LLC, and has served as director, choreographer, producer and executive producer on numerous projects throughout his career.
Finding Meaningful Food: A Memoir — Harriet V. Kuhnlein marks his documentary filmmaking debut as director and executive producer.
About Harriet V. Kuhnlein
Harriet V. Kuhnlein is an internationally recognized researcher, educator and advocate whose pioneering career has focused on Indigenous Peoples' traditional food systems, nutrition, health and well-being.
Her work has brought together scientific research and Indigenous knowledge while emphasizing the importance of traditional foods, cultural practices and community participation in improving health outcomes.
Through decades of international work, Kuhnlein helped establish Indigenous food and nutrition as an important area of global research, advocacy and human rights. She is the author of several books, and is Professor Emerita of Human Nutrition who was recently awarded the LIVING LEGEND Award from the International Union of Nutritional Sciences in Tokyo.
FINDING MEANINGFUL FOOD pairs Kuhnlein's professional legacy with a personal account of her childhood, family and relationships, aiming to present a fuller portrait of the woman behind decades of advocacy work on behalf of Indigenous communities.
