Leftovers

1

(silence)

- [Seth] If I were to say

senior citizens and old people,

what's the first thing

that comes to your mind?

- Bad driving.

- [Seth] Yeah?

- Yeah.

- Well, I don't know.

I guess I would think of, you

know, like old folks' homes,

like residences and

healthcare, things like that.

- Social security, Medicare,

retirement plans.

- My mother.

- Grandparents, grandmas.

They get cheaper bus tickets.

- I mean, I have nothing

against old people

at all, you know?

The only thing about old

people is just, I mean,

let's be honest,

they're old people.

- The problem here with

the seniors is they're lost

and they're forgotten,

because everybody's so busy

with their life that they forget

that the seniors

have a big need.

- People have ostracized

our seniors, and it's sad,

because that's our

greatest source of wisdom.

- Generally people have

an idea that, you know,

that because you get older,

you don't have value.

- [Seth] So if I told you

that every day in America,

six million seniors go hungry,

what would you say to that?

- You know, it's heartbreaking,

and I really didn't know that.

- I'd say that's believable.

And it's a shame.

- I guess I'm not

educated enough.

I thought they would

have a lot more money

than some of the

younger population.

- You know what, that's

by choice, my man.

I have to say that's by choice.

- That would make me think

about how we've moved away

from family units, taking

care of elderly and moved

towards kind of assigning

them their own separate lives.

- It's shameless in a

country such as America,

because I think there's

enough for everyone here.

- The problem of senior

hunger in America is real.

It's a real problem,

it's a terrible problem.

- They're the people

who fought our wars.

They're the people who

have built our towns,

educated our children, and

protected our communities.

They should not be hungry.

They should not be the new

face of hunger in America.

- It's not just about poverty.

It's not just about

lack of funds.

To a lot of people,

it's about the lack

of ability to help themselves.

- I live in Los Angeles.

- [Seth] That's

me, Seth Hancock.

I'm a photographer

in Los Angeles.

And, as of right now,

I'm a full-fledged

documentary filmmaker.

Well, not really.

You see, most people who

work on documentaries

do so because it's

a passion project,

or something that they've

pursued for a lifetime.

But in my case, I was actually

asked to make a documentary.

And not just any

documentary, mind you.

A documentary featuring

the most un-sexy subject

in all of America, senior

citizens and hunger.

Initially, I was going

to turn the project down,

because I've never gone

hungry a day in my life.

I really couldn't bring

anything to the table,

and rarely do I think

about getting old.

But for all the reasons I

wanted to say no to this project

are the exact reasons

I wanted to say yes.

Because I needed to see how

prevalent this is in America,

how this is gonna affect your

life or my life down the road.

And for those reasons alone,

I wanted to make this film.

This is my story.

Starting in Los Angeles and

not knowing a damn thing

about senior citizens and

hunger was a bit of a challenge,

so I did what anybody

else would do,

and I contacted the

Meals on Wheels program.

Unbeknownst to me, the

woman who founded it,

Sister Alice Marie Quinn,

happens to be kind of

a celebrity amongst celebrities

here in Los Angeles.

And fortunately enough,

she agreed to meet with me,

and to talk with me

about this project.

She showed me

around the facility,

and let me know what it

took to feed thousands

upon thousands of

people on a daily basis.

Needless to say,

I was blown away.

But, by the end of

our conversation,

I felt so much better about

knowing where to begin.

And then she said, I think

there's someone you should meet.

You need to go talk with Carla.

And that's exactly what I did.

- My name is Carla Laemmle.

I'm 101.

I was a professional dancer.

Carl Laemmle was my uncle.

He founded Universal Studios.

We lived right on the lot.

It was wonderful, I loved it.

I was brought up and

trained as a dancer,

but somehow, acting came

kind of natural to me.

I liked it.

I liked acting.

The first movie I was in

was Phantom of the Opera.

I believe I was 14 years old.

(dramatic music)

- [Seth] Do you remember

your line from Dracula?

- I hope so.

(laughs)

Among the rugged peaks that

frown down upon the Borgo Pass

are found crumbling

castles of a bygone age.

(laughs)

It was about 30 years ago

that I became very ill,

and they diagnosed it as TB.

And I was unable to go out

and do anything on my own.

And I have to have meals

delivered some way.

And I learned about this

company that brought food

to the house, and that

was how it all started

that I was able to live at home.

For me, it's the only

way I wanna live.

- [Seth] How

important is that meal

that gets delivered

to you everyday?

- It's very, very important.

I couldn't do without it.

Absolutely.

It's my life.

"Dear Ms. Laemmle, hello.

"My name is Adam Barnette

and I'm a big fan

"and admirer of yours.

"You're my favorite actress.

"I would love if you

would please sign

"the two enclosed photos for

me, and for my brother CJ.

"We'd appreciate it

and always treasure it.

"Bye."

- One of the challenges

about aging is, in fact,

making sure that you

are properly nourished

when you do get older, so

that we can remain healthy,

we can remain in our own homes.

I don't know anybody in my

lifetime who's ever said,

"I can't wait to get old so

I can be in a nursing home."

- We're concerned about

the older person's safety,

and their level of care.

But sometimes we forget

about their quality of life.

And by placing them in an

assisted living facility,

or looking at some

type of nursing care,

we're restricting their

ability, their autonomy.

- [Seth] Where do you think

you would be physically,

if you didn't have a meal

delivered to you everyday?

- Well, I certainly

wouldn't be at home.

I would be in some institution

or a hospital of some kind,

where I wouldn't be

living my own life.

It makes life something

that I can look

forward to every day.

It gives meaning to my life.

I feel that life has

still a lot to offer me.

- [Seth] Meeting Carla

was a great experience,

but I knew if I was

gonna give any legitimacy

to this documentary, it meant

that I had to get out of LA.

In doing my research, I

learned about this guy

who runs a food bank and

delivers meals during the day,

but at night is a headbanging,

heavy metal drummer.

I mean, this could not be

any more of a departure

from Sister Alice Marie Quinn

than if I had

scripted it myself.

So I knew I had to get

up to Marin County,

because this could

be interesting.

(heavy metal music)

Do you think it's important

for people to be able to stay

in their homes, versus, say,

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