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It\'s\\xa0been\\xa0several days since the Oscars, and I\'ll admit it:\\xa0I was keenly disappointed when\\xa0Knife Skills\\xa0didn\'t win\\xa0for\\xa0Best Documentary Short. But now that I\'ve had a few days to reflect on the Oscars\\xa0as a whole\\xa0(go, Frances McDormand, go!), and now that I\'ve\\xa0listened\\xa0to part\\xa0two\\xa0of my interview with\\xa0Knife Skills\\xa0filmmaker Tom Lennon and Cleveland chef-restaurateur Brandon Chrostowski,\\xa0I\'ve\\xa0realized that\\xa0it was a winner\\xa0regardless of Sunday\'s\\xa0outcome.\\xa0

Why? Because the film has succeeded in making more people aware of the\\xa0multifaceted\\xa0problems recently released convicts face in\\xa0reentering the community. And that awareness has resulted in\\xa0positive steps by\\xa0the restaurant\\xa0that stars in the film, Edwins,\\xa0and the related\\xa0Edwins Leadership Institute. As Brandon notes: "Since the time of the shooting, we built a campus, so there\'s housing for people; there\'s a fitness center, a library. There\'s graduate housing. Got another building, working on a butcher shop. We\'re\\xa0[Edwins Leadership Institute] in\\xa013\\xa0prisons now."\\xa0 \\xa0 What makes\\xa0the film\\xa0even more amazing is that,\\xa0as you\'ll hear\\xa0in this episode,\\xa0Knife Skills\\xa0was shot on a shoestring budget and was turned down by Netflix, HBO, and Hulu\\u2014which is\\xa0why serious eaters can watch it for free on\\xa0The\\xa0New Yorker\'s\\xa0website.\\xa0 \\xa0 That\'s why I think\\xa0Knife Skills\\xa0comes out on top, no matter how the\\xa0Academy\\xa0voted. The film represents a triumph of determination, artistic expression, and genuinely\\xa0life-affirming\\xa0extended-family\\xa0values.\\xa0 Watch it, listen to our conversation,\\xa0and decide for yourself.\\xa0 \\xa0 ----------- The transcript for this episode can be found here on Serious Eats.