How Long Is “La Cucina”?

A small group of amateur cooks and kitchen guests discover exactly why some refer to the kitchen as the "heart of the house" in director Allison Hebble's intimate drama. As the heat of the afternoon gives way to a pleasantly mild summer evening, thirty year-old Lily Ireland (Christima Hendrix) begins preparing Insalata Caprese for her much-older love interest - a Spanish born photo journalist named Michael (Jaoquim de Almeida). Meanwhile, in a nearby apartment, Chris (Oz Perkins) watches nervously as his pregnant wife Shelly (Leisha Hailey) struggles to make the perfect lasagna. When the dish proves inedible and Chris orders a pizza, hormonal Shelly tearfully seeks solace in the company of her best friend Jude (Rachel Hunter). Despite knowing well that her lover Celia (Clare Carey) won't make it home in time for dinner, Jude passionately assembles an elaborate Italian meal that is destined to become leftovers before it is even cooked. In another part of town, as filmmaker Celia works on a movie scene featuring an elaborate kitchen set-up, the famished crew hungrily devours pizza just out of camera range.