Familiarity breeds roach-respect, and even love, for a group of Florida insect farmers

‘This is a really beautiful roach’, says Tequila Ray Snorkel, chief technology officer at the sustainable bug farming operation Ovipost, as she attempts to sell the audience on the charm of cockroaches – in particular, their lovely faces. And, as the film Bug Farm explores, Snorkel isn’t the only one on the small LaBelle, Florida farm who’s developed a fondness for insects that outsiders might find peculiar. A film at the intersection of farm labour, Southern US culture and humanity’s relationship with the insect world, the US director Lydia Cornett’s charming short documentary reveals how, when it comes to the workers dealing with critters most people find gross or pesky, often both, seeing them up close fosters a new appreciation.