Saving Seafood

‘LAST MAN FISHING’ DOCUMENTARY ASKS IF SMALL-SCALE FISHERIES CAN SURVIVE

February 8, 2015 — The following was released by Kelley Jordan Photography:

Our world’s oceans are in trouble, and that’s a story worth telling. So much so that talented filmmaker and photographer duo JD and Kelley Jordan Schuyler committed two years of traveling coast to coast to uncover the story of our nation’s small-scale fisherman. Now, they’re starting a Kickstarter campaign to help fund remaining production of their documentary, Last Man Fishing.

With 80% of the world’s fish stocks overexploited, a collapse of our ocean’s fish stocks is becoming a serious concern. Large, industrial fisheries and unsustainable fishing practices are the current norm, leaving small-scale fisheries, who provide answers to collapsing fish stocks, fighting to survive. “When we started talking to these women and men, we realized that this is a pivotal time for our fisheries. The question of ‘who will have the right to fish in the future?’ is being decided now.” said director JD Schuyler. “Generations of fishermen in coastal America are disappearing as we speak and it’s time to ask why.”

Centered on the personal stories of fishermen from Alaska to Maine, Last Man Fishing showcases the ways small-scale fishermen have adapted to, struggled in, and are now beginning to remake the seafood system. With gorgeous cinematography and compelling narratives, the film looks at the ways small-scale fishermen have taken on the challenge by working with consumers, chefs, policy makers, and community leaders to forge new systems that enhance the sustainability of the seafood supply chain.

The filmmaking duo is now looking for supporters to join the movement to help secure the livelihoods for small-scale fishermen in the US. Last Man Fishinglaunches a 30-day Kickstarter campaign on February 8 with a goal of $35,000. With filming currently 50% complete, these funds will help to complete production as well as post-production of the project.

Help tell the Last Man Fishing story:

‘Counting Fish’ takes a closer look at UMass Dartmouth team’s fishing industry research

November 16, 2015 — NEW BEDFORD — Gentle persuasion might best describe a new 50-minute documentary on fisheries research going on at the UMass Dartmouth School for Marine Science and Technology.

Don Cuddy, program director for the Center for Sustainable Fisheries and a Mattapoisett resident, provides the narration, taking the viewer aboard the fishing vessel Liberty in May of 2015 to observe fish survey work.

There, one sees footage from eight days at sea, culled from seven hours, of Dr. Kevin Stokesbury of SMAST. He is the researcher who developed the “drop camera” for counting scallops on the sea floor, exposing faulty science, and helped create the highly profitable scallop industry known today.

The New Bedford Whaling Museum is launching the new film, “Counting Fish,” on Harvest of the Sea Day, Nov. 22 at 1:30 p.m. in the museum theater, free to the public.

What viewers will see is a documentary that Cuddy agrees is small, done on a very tight budget.

But without lot of raised voices or a confrontational style, the film depicts SMAST scientists as conducting very serious survey work on fish populations. In between shots of nets being hauled up and fish being hand-counted on deck, Stokesbury and his crew explain carefully and in layman’s terms what they are doing and how they are doing it.

Read the full story at New Bedford Standard Times

New England Filmmaker Documents an Industry Under Siege

July 24, 2015 — MASSACHUSETTS — As a kid growing up in Rockport, David Wittkower remembers driving down along the Gloucester waterfront and being greeted by the sight of the expansive Gloucester fishing fleet at port and the scent of fish, either being cooked or unloaded.

That memory stayed with the 55-year-old filmmaker when he returned to visit his parents, Andrew and Mary, about a year-and-a-half ago, especially after what he observed in subsequent nostalgic drives along East Main and Rogers streets.

“Every single day, I would drive down there and think, ‘Well, the entire fleet can’t all be out at once,’” Wittkower said. “I thought, ‘Where are all the boats?’”

That singular thought became the seed for Wittkower’s newest documentary film project on the demise of the once-mighty Gloucester fishing fleet. The working title is “Dead in the Water.”

Read the full story at The Gloucester Times