By Liam Mazeika, For The Miami Student
The minds and stomachs of both local and international students alike are about to be filled with a new student-created YouTube show, "World's Table." The show is focused on cooking and encouraging a dialogue between students of all origins.
The show will feature a different cuisine and a different chef every episode. The students who created "World's Table," juniors Annie Aldrich, Jing Long, Garth Herbert and senior Maxwell Shin, plan to quickly cover many different cultures as possible through their unique dishes.
Although the show just started, they plan to make it a regular feature next semester. The first episode, centered on Sichuan cooking, will act as a pilot to see if they will get funding for the rest of the season, which will be released next semester.
"World's Table" began in a media production class, and it quickly gained popularity as a side project or student club, gathering students of many majors and cultures to work on it.
It was filmed in a set on campus, with a segment about professional cooking filmed at Sichuan Chili Restaurant in Cincinnati.
The chef at Sichuan Chili, Chef Chow, is originally from Sichuan, China, and came to Ohio to spread his cooking to more people.
The student chef on the show, senior Jing Tang, is an international student also from Sichuan. On the show, she prepared boiled beef in spicy sauce.
"World's Table" is viewable on both YouTube and Facebook. Aldrich, the co-president and co-star, said "World's Table" will help people learn about other cultures and to get a glimpse at their daily lives through their kitchens.
"Obviously there's not a show being produced at Miami that does that," she said.
She said it will help to give a chance for students of all cultural backgrounds to discuss their differences and similarities and to bond over one common denominator - food.
Herbert, a media and culture and interactive media studies double major, is the "jack of all trades" for the show. As he has experience with the film studio, many people went to him for advice and help.
For the first episode, he was the primary cameraman.
Herbert hopes that "World's Table" will help to heal any divide between the students.
"It feels like there's a disconnect between the local and the international students," he said.
He said he believes that food is something everyone can bond over, and that he wants to use it to bring students together.
Shin, another producer, was approached by one of the founders for help as they're classmates.
At first, he was hesitant, as he really didn't know how it would all turn out, but he was very satisfied with the results. All the producers are.
The first episode, available now on "World's Table's" Facebook and YouTube pages, will be followed next semester by four to six more.