Film and food in North West The Hartbeespoort area is beautiful, rich with oft underrated food producers and chefs, and a community super-keen on their local edibles and drink. It's the perfect storm for a brilliant food fair, which promises to be even more magnificent this time around. This year the area presents the Hartiwood Film and Food Show, from September 11 to 13.Food and the flicks have always played nicely together, from the ode to noodles that is Tampopo to the animated gastro adventures of Ratatouille, but this is not the only reason for the pairing: the set created for the local movie French Toast, by Hartiwood films, has been left in place - complete with Parisian café street scene and Eiffel Tower (slightly scaled down) replica. This has been the inspiration not just for addition of movies but for the Francophone bent that both the films and edibles take. Twenty movies will be shown on the cool drive-in-style cinema screen, from Hundred Foot Journey to whacky turn-of-the-century silent French films.This all happens alongside a stupendous artisan food and drink market. Among the French goods will be the famed Pepe Charlot goat's cheese, garlic snails with baguette, Belgian waffles, patisserie from the Prue Leith pastry school and organic absinthe from Jorgensen's. Deliciously and excitingly French in this context means also goods from Francophone countries in Africa, so you'll stumble upon West African sauces from Mrs O, Algerian falafel (who knew there was an Algerian lady in Brits, but there is) and pickles from our African Island neighbour Mauritius. And there's a huge range of non-Francophone but also delicious foods. These include the wonderful Palestinian breads, biscuits and pastries from King Arabic in Joburg's Mayfair, charcuterie, cheeses, olives and more from Slow Food Magaliesberg, organic sourdough breads, organic nougat from Jakalshond, organic and free-range meat from Braeside butchery, craft chocolate, Serbian cheeses, and craft beer. Plus, there are both French and South African wines. A high-end gourmet gala dinner will feature acclaimed Burundian/Belgian chef Coco Reinarhz.This is absolutely not just another food fair. It's brilliantly curated, giving both heavy-hitters and small producers space, slightly mad (as with all the best things), and absolutely worth the hour trip from Johannesburg. If you can't bear both the drive there and back in one day, consider making a weekend of it.To buy tickets to films and the market - or even apply for a stall - go to hartiwoodfoodandfilmshow. co.za for the full lowdown...