In film, production design helps transport an audience into another world. At the premiere of Lion at the California Science Center, that idea extended beyond the screen and into the guest experience. Schaffer collaborated with Disney's production team, Little Cinema to to develop a culinary experience that felt at home within the event’s safari-inspired setting, surrounded by plant life, ambient lighting, and immersive design.
The connection between food and filmmaking was especially fitting for a project with executive producer Jon Favreau, whose work has long explored the intersection of food, storytelling, and hospitality. From Chef to his continued involvement in the culinary world, Favreau understands how food can communicate place, culture, and emotion. Schaffer brought that same philosophy to the Lion premiere through a globally inspired menu featuring jollof rice arancini, beet falafel, samosas, jerk chicken, piri piri chicken, tropical flavors, and interactive kebab and dessert stations.
At the premiere, food became more than something guests experienced between moments of the program - it became part of the production itself. Bold flavors, colorful presentations, interactive stations, and globally inspired dishes complemented the surrounding environment and helped create a cohesive sense of place. It’s an approach Schaffer brings to experiential catering: when culinary design is considered alongside the space, storytelling, and production, food can become another element of the world guests are invited to enter.
