New Docuseries "Specialty" Spotlights New Zealand Espresso Scene

The four-part sequence, directed by James Ladanyi, leads viewers by way of the espresso world of Wellington, New Zealand.

BY BHAVI PATEL
BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE

Pictures by Ana Caicedo Macia

Specialty espresso has at all times had a narrative to inform—whispered within the steam of an espresso, buried within the ethics of a sourcing contract, or worn on the calloused fingers of a barista who entered their first competitors with all the pieces on the road. Specialty, a brand new four-part documentary sequence created and directed by James Ladanyi, tells a very attention-grabbing story, straight from the center of Wellington, New Zealand’s thriving espresso hotspot.

Behind the scenes of documentary series "Specialty" — Created and directed by James Ladanyi, *Specialty* is a four-part documentary sequence that shines a lightweight on New Zealand espresso tradition.

The trail from barista to director

James’ path to filmmaking ran immediately by way of the espresso bar. After working as a barista whereas finishing his undergraduate diploma in Wellington and later whereas finishing a Grasp’s in performing in Bristol, U.Okay., he returned house throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and took on the administration of a espresso stand situated inside a neighborhood barbershop.

James Ladanyi, director of Specialty, shares that the docuseries was inspired by his own time behind the bar. — James Ladanyi, director of *Specialty*, shares that the docuseries was impressed by his personal time behind the bar.

“Serving to to construct a specialty espresso enterprise from scratch—designing the menu, crunching the uncooked costings, deciding worth factors, constructing a buyer base from nothing—actually confirmed me how immensely tough it’s to run a profitable espresso operation,” he informed Barista Journal.

The spark for Specialty got here from a painfully acquainted trade second: the collective reluctance to lift flat white costs from NZ $5.50 to $6.00. “Seeing the damaging public response, even from loyal prospects, to such a small worth rise was actually disheartening,” James says. That disconnect between espresso lovers and occasional makers turned the inventive catalyst for Specialty.

4 episodes, one trade story

Behind the scenes of "Specialty," a documentary series by James Ladanyi — Docuseries *Specialty* goals to bridge the disconnect between those that devour espresso and those that make it. Episodes observe leaders within the espresso world, together with roasters, espresso store house owners, and occasional rivals.

Specialty is structured as 4 thematic episodes, every pulling again a unique curtain on the craft.

Episode 1 — Drip Idea (now streaming on YouTube) facilities on what it takes to personal and function a specialty café in a post-COVID world, exploring the irreplaceable social position of the coffeehouse as a “third area” in city life.

Episode 2 — Champion follows Honoka Kawashima, New Zealand’s 2023 Barista Champion, who positioned fourth on the World Barista Championship in 2024, and Frank Hsu, founding father of Frank’s Espresso in Wellington, in addition to Honoka’s coach. The episode digs into the science of palette improvement and what it takes to guage on the highest degree.

Episode 3 (at the moment in manufacturing) rewinds the clock to hint New Zealand’s espresso historical past with historian Redmer Yska, from immigrant-driven café tradition within the nineteenth and twentieth centuries to the espresso growth of the Nineties.

Episode 4 — Origin follows Rene Macaulay, head roaster at Folks’s Espresso in Wellington for 17 years, and a pioneer of lighter roast profiles in a darkish roast-dominant tradition. Rene’s twenty years of visiting coffee-growing areas throughout Africa and South America inform a nuanced dialog about honest commerce, natural certification, and the moral imperatives on the coronary heart of recent sourcing.

Telling the story that espresso deserves

What unites every episode is a conviction that the specialty espresso trade has been chronically underrepresented in movie and tv. “In contrast with meals, cooking and restaurant eating, and even to some extent wine and beer, espresso is a consumable trade that has been very undertold,” says James. “I wished so as to add one small contribution to that.”

The sequence doesn’t simply converse to Wellington. These are common tales: of competitors nerves, moral sourcing dilemmas, the economics of craft, and the cultures that espresso builds. They may resonate with anybody who has ever stood behind a grinder, pulled a shot, or just fallen in love with a cup.

Episode 1 of Specialty is now streaming on YouTube. — Episode 1 of *Specialty* is now streaming on YouTube.

Crowdfunding a craft

James shares that Specialty has been a group effort, formed by help from a wide range of sources. The staff secured NZ $5,000 from Wellington Metropolis Council (WCC) in late 2023 and raised a further $12,000 by way of crowdfunding to finish Episode 1. They’ve reapplied to WCC for additional help to complete Episodes 2 and three, and James is candid concerning the path ahead: “At a sure level, we consider the onus needs to be on organizations and companies, each non-public and public, to acknowledge the financial, social, and tourism advantages of backing a undertaking like this.”

The place to observe

For espresso professionals and fans alike, Specialty affords one thing uncommon: a documentary sequence that treats the craft with the mental rigor and emotional depth it has at all times deserved. Episode 1 is free to observe now on YouTube, and when you consider nice espresso deserves nice storytelling, that is precisely the sequence you will have been ready for.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Bhavi Patel is a meals author specializing in espresso and tea, and a brand-building specialist with a background in dairy know-how and an curiosity in culinary historical past and sensory notion of meals.