2B — Thursday, November 19, 2015
the b-side
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Farmer’s market is 
worth the lost sleep

By CAROLINE FILIPS

Daily Arts Writer

On any given Saturday, there’s 

a high chance I won’t be able to 
drag myself out of bed before 
noon. Last Friday night, despite 
my 
body’s 
anticipated 
extra 

resting hours, I set my alarm 
for 10 a.m. and changed the 
beat of my circadian rhythm 
in preparation for Kerrytown’s 
well-attended weekend affair: 
the Ann Arbor Farmers Market. 
Yet, 
by 
seasoned 
shopper 

standards, I was late to the party.

According to market manager 

Sarah DeWitt, a recognizable 
crop of local epicureans and 
Main Street chefs tend to arrive 
at 7 a.m. sharp. 

Along 
with 
beating 
the 

laggard crowd, the regulars 
alternate between chatting with 
farmers, inspecting produce and 
carting away wholesome treats 
in massive boxes and chef pans.

“There are fewer Ann Arbor 

restaurants not stopping down 
here,” DeWitt said. 

Maggie Long, Jolly Pumpkin 

chef and managing partner, is 
always among the early birds 
toting her handcart.

“She refuses to give up 

market 
mornings 
because 

she wants to keep that face 
time, connection and sense of 
community with the different 
farmers,” said Chirs North, 
Jolly Pumpkin floor manager.

For 
nearly 
a 
century, 

sustaining 
a 
sense 
of 

community among shoppers, 
local businesses and farmers 
has been the essence of the 
market. A majority of the 

veteran 
vendors 
are 
either 

second- 
or 
third-generation 

farmers whose relatives began 
selling at the original location 
near Main Street in 1919. The 
current market was erected 
in the 1930s by the Works 
Progress Administration and 
is situated on Detroit St. in the 
heart of Kerrytown.

Today, 
the 
market 
is 

“producers 
only,” 
meaning 

all items for sale are made 
or grown by vendors with no 
resale. It’s stipulated within 
the market rules that those 
who sell products must grow 
their items in Michigan or an 
abutting state.

Accordingly, 
nearly 
all 

vendors are within an hour 
radius, 
with 
the 
exception 

of Donna Puehler, owner of 
Grandma’s Kitchen in Ohio. 
For three decades, Puehler 
has been a beloved provider 
of baked goods and eggs, and 
simply known as “grandma” to 
frequent market-goers.

At present, the market offers 

the products of more than 
60 produce and diversified 
produce farmers — those who 
sell 
additional 
items 
such 

as 
greenhouse 
flowering 

plants along with fruits and 
vegetables — 30 artisan vendors 
and 
a 
few 
specialty 
food 

vendors. Essentially, it’s the 
one-stop shop for everything 
from leather handbags to maple 
syrup to the recent addition 
of Fluffy Bottom Creamery’s 
yogurts and cheeses.

“We aim to maintain a 

variety,” DeWitt said. “We try 
to cater to all product niches of 

fresh, local foods.”

To 
ensure 
the 
market’s 

longstanding 
mission 
of 

providing shoppers with locally 
grown foods directly from the 
source, each seller’s farmland 
is routinely inspected.

“That’s a pretty particular 

thing for our market that’s not 
true of a lot of other farmers 
markets,” DeWitt said. “It’s 
something we’re particularly 
proud of.”

As a Davis, Calif. native, 

DeWitt frequented the city’s 
local farmers market, and 
has since remained a farmers 
market enthusiast. She still 
looks 
to 
her 
hometown 

marketplace for inspiration. 
For instance, a few years ago 
in the summertime, DeWitt 
introduced the predominantly 
Californian trend of food truck 
rallies on Wednesday evenings. 
The rallies offer an alternative 
to 
Ann 
Arbor’s 
brick-and-

mortar restaurant fare.

“We draw upon multiple 

sources for inspiration, but for 
me I think it always goes back 
to Davis because I think those 
things that stick with you as a 
kid are what you remember as 
adults,” DeWitt said.

As I sat on a bench just outside 

the market with DeWitt, her 
passion for the community was 
palpable as she stopped to greet 
each visitor whom she seemed 
to know on a personal level.

After our chat I strolled 

through the market, finding 
myself unexpectedly taken by 
rows of violet cabbage rosettes 
and the last of growers peak-
season apples. I was instantly 
convinced 
that 
the 
Ann 

Arbor Farmers Market is the 
only 
weekend 
event 
worth 

sacrificing a few hours of sleep.

“We try to cater 

to all product 
niches of fresh, 

local foods.”

TRAILER REVIEW

 Unlike the terrible trailer for 
“Insurgent,” the trailer for the 
latest installment in “The Diver-
gent Series” 
is, at least, 
colorful. As it 
begins, Tris 
(Shailene 
Woodley, 
“The Fault in 
Our Stars”), 
Four (Theo 
James, 
“Golden 
Boy”) and the 
rest of their 
team skirt 
a desolate, computer-animated 
countryside that resembles Mars. 
It contrasts strikingly with the 
antiseptic green of the ship where 
they are rescued. It’s possible to 
get wrapped up in the drive of the 
trailer, to fall for its quickly build-
ing intensity and even some hints 
of the story. One character men-
tions that the children of this new 
colony have grown up surveilling 
the main characters, a potentially 
intriguing idea. 

 
Then you tune in to the dialogue, 
including such gems as “People 
think walls separate us. But they 
also protect us,” “They’re trying 
to destroy us” and Jeff Daniels’s 
predictable assurance that Tris 
is “the only one” who can help 
rebuild society. To understand-
ably cynical viewers, the mon-
tage of images featuring flying 
spaceships, people running in 
panic and scenes of Tris and 
Four’s obligatory romance will 
feel completely by-the-numbers.
 “The Divergent Series: 
Allegiant” is a terrible idea for 
a movie to begin with — it’s 
based only on the first half of 
Veronica Roth’s YA book “Alle-
giant,” by far the most boring 
half-book in the series — but if 
it balances its shameless info-
dumps with thrilling action, it 
could manage to at least be a 
mindless, entertaining action 
movie. At worst, it’s another 
uninventive Y.A. adaptation 
that will be forgotten quickly.

-BENJAMIN ROSENSTOCK
LIONSGATE

C+

The 
Divergent 
Series: 
Allegiant 

Lionsgate 

Mar. 18, 2016

Media careers 
explored at forum

Opportunites 

abound for 

entertainment 
business paths

By MARIAM SHEIKH

Daily Style Editor

Some people enter college 

knowing the exact path they 
want to follow. Some of these 
students — the cream of the crop 
— make it into the University’s 
School of Theatre, Music & 
Dance — it’s simply a stepping 
stone before they make it to the 
big leagues on Broadway. Others 
are those pacing the business-
oriented halls of Ross, destined 
for Wall Street.

But what about those of us who 

choose a less traditional path 
— those of us whose passions 
lie in somewhat of a gray area 
— hidden away in the overlap 
of arts and business? What 
about those of us interested in 
entertainment? This is where 
things start to get complicated.

It 
would 
seem 
that 
the 

University 
offers 
many 

opportunities for networking 
and career-oriented exploration 
to the likes of engineers and 
students in the Ross School 
of Business, but the case can 
even be made for LSA students 
looking 
to 
go 
down 
more 

common career paths.

But what about us artsy 

folk? The ones who geek out 
over 1970s jazz, or have an 
obsession with the character 
Ari Gold from “Entourage”? For 
students who want to enter the 
fields of entertainment, media 
or even the careers in their 
overlap, there are not many 
resources 
or 
opportunities 

on 
campus 
to 
network 
or 

explore. We acknowledge that 
the path is long, competitive 
and unconventional, but the 
opportunity to have a chance to 
explore should still be there for 
all students who want to avail it.

Each year, the Communication 

Studies Department hosts an 
Entertainment 
and 
Media 

Career forum, which I had 
the opportunity to attend on 
Nov. 13. Featuring six alumni 
from various sectors in the 
entertainment 
and 
media 

industries, all at different points 
in their careers, students had the 
opportunity to hear from each 
one of them in presentations and 
round-table discussions. 

While the event is primarily 

targeted toward upperclassman 
looking 
to 
network 
for 

internships and potential job 
opportunities, it was refreshing 
to speak with students from all 
ages and from various schools 
within the University, who were 
there to learn more about this 
specialized field.

When I told my parents I 

wanted to pursue a career in the 
business side of the arts world, 
specifically in entertainment, 
they simply laughed and wished 
me luck. This forum provided 
ample opportunity to listen, 
learn and question some of 
the best in the field, extremely 
helpful for those of us dealing 
with a particularly exclusive and 
seemingly mysterious industry.

This 
stigma 
surrounding 

this crucial sector of the arts 
almost deterred me from even 
considering it as a viable life 
choice at all — and that shouldn’t 
be the case for anyone. But, if I 
took away anything from the 
stories the panelists at the EMC 
forum shared, it’s that while this 
career choice is unconventional 
at best, with hard work the 

choice will be worth it.

As I see my friends and 

peers 
around 
me 
accepting 

high-paying offers to amazing 
companies left and right, it’s 
important to keep a level head 
and remember to not be afraid 
to start at the bottom, because 
everyone needs to pay their 
dues and start somewhere — 
especially in entertainment.

Particularly, University alum 

Ben Davis, who graduated in 2011 
majoring in Communications 
studies and is now a digital agent 
at William Morris Endeavor—
IMG, discussed his time at 
the prestigious talent agency 
from his humble start in the 
WME mailroom. In the digital 
world where mail may not be 
all that important, for WME 
employees having experience 
from the ground up is not only 
crucial, but also necessary, for 
employment. The mail room, 
while not as glamorous as 
people envision entertainment 
to be, gave Davis a clear path 
in, and the best way to learn 
about how everything works at 
WME, and in the entertainment 
industry in general.

The 
second 
story 
that 

resonated with me from the 
forum had a crucial moral, 
while easy in theory it proves 
difficult in practice. University 
alum Amy Fleischman, a 2012 
Communications 
Studies 

Most Ann Arbor 
restaurants get 
produce from 
the market.

“We aim to 

maintain variety

GRANT HARDY/Daily

Lawrence Shapiro(right) speaks at the communication studies Entertainment Media Career Forum at Rackham on Friday.

graduate and a casting assistant 
at 
DreamWorks 
Animation, 

shared her journey to where 
she is now and stressed the 
importance of making the most 
of every and any opportunity 
that comes your way.

Starting as a page in NBC’s 

highly 
competitive 
page 

program, Fleischman stepped 
in when USA network’s then-
President of Production Jeff 
Kirschenbaum 
needed 
an 

assistant. While she may not 
have been ready for this jump 
from a page at that exact 
moment, she took the challenge. 
Because of her hard work and 
dedication, she networked and 
made the necessary connections 
to get her to where she is today 
at DreamWorks.

I think about all the times I 

have shied away from challenge 
because of this inherent fear of 

failure. Choosing a career post-
college is hard enough as it is, 
but it doesn’t get any easier when 
you choose a field that doesn’t 
have any guarantees. The arts 
is a grueling and unpredictable 
world, and the business side of it 
is no better.

University alum Peter Jaysen, 

class of 1989 and a film and 
television producer at Veritas 
Entertainment, feels like he 
is just now hitting his stride. 
After 20-plus years in the 
industry, his past experiences 
and hard work have begun to 
catch up with him and he now 
feels established and settled in 
the industry. At one point he 
described the entertainment 
world as a country club of 
sorts, and how he feels like he 
is finally a full-time member as 
opposed to just having a guest 
pass.

While the road is long and 

the path tricky, I couldn’t have 
been more excited and affirmed 
in my career choice just through 
seeing the passion each one of 
these accomplished graduates 
had about the work they were 
doing and all the work they had 
done to get there.

We have the privilege of 

attending a university with 
one of the largest communities 
of alumni in the world, who 
have gone on into diverse fields 
from 
journalism, 
politics, 

engineering, to entertainment. 
A forum such as this shouldn’t 
be the only thing available for 
students choosing to follow 
their artistic passions. However, 
it is one crucial step forward in 
giving all of us entertainment 
junkies a chance to learn — and 
to learn from the best alumni 
around.

It’s important 
to keep a level 
head and not to 

be afraid.

My parents 
laughed and 

wished me luck.

The arts is a 

grueling world.

