Expired October 1, 2021 6:59 AM
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Jesmark, a Maltese fisherman, contends with a newfound leak in his wooden LUZZU boat. Barely getting by, he sees his livelihood - and a family tradition from generations before him - imperiled by diminishing harvests, a ruthless fishing industry, and a stagnating ecosystem. Desperate to provide for his wife and their newborn son, whose growth impediment requires treatment, Jesmark gradually slips into an illicit black-market fishing operation.


Followed by interview with director Alex Camilerri with Rajendra Roy for Film at Lincoln Center/MOMA’s 2021 New Directors/New Films.


(September 24-30 - You have any time between 12:00am on September 24 and 11:59pm on September 30 to start the film. You will have 24 hours from that time to finish the screening.)


Oregon only


Alex Camilleri, Director


Director's Statement from Alex Camilleri:

I am most moved by films that harness reality. For me, this is the greatest strength of moving images; showing the audience something compellingly real and unexpected. In LUZZU, I strived to take the audience into multiple successive worlds they'd never encountered before. Years of research were necessary; I came to learn not just about traditional fishing in Malta, but also how the wider seafood industry operates, including its parallel shadow economies filled with smuggling, sabotage, and even "fish fraud," as depicted in the film.


I was also eager to find ways for LUZZU to belong to our current moment, challenging the nostalgic view of fishing in the Mediterranean. Early in my research, I came to learn about the network of contracted labor from South and Southeast Asia - sea workers (like the character Uday) who travel the world to make their living in various marine-based industries. In Malta, these men are denied official residence status, and a kind of "handshake" loophole sees the men living just off-shore, on their boats.

  • Year
    2021
  • Runtime
    94 minutes
  • Language
    Maltese
  • Country
    Malta
  • Director
    Alex Camilleri
  • Screenwriter
    Alex Camilleri
  • Producer
    Rebecca Anastasi, Ramin Bahrani, Alex Camilleri, Oliver Mallia
  • Cast
    Jesmark Scicluna, Michela Farrugia, David Scicluna
  • Cinematographer
    Leo Lefevre
  • Editor
    Alex Camilleri
  • Production Design
    Jon Banthorpe
  • Composer
  • Music
    Jon Natchez (original score)