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Commercial Fisheries News
Volume 36 Number 10
June 2009
Feature film to showcase fishermen’s plight
NEW BEDFORD, MA One of the last remaining independent owner/captains of a groundfish boat working out of New Bedford struggles to hang onto his boat and his way of life against tightening regulations and a harsh economic climate.
Sounds like a story right out of the pages of Commercial Fisheries News. But it’s not.
It’s the driving plot line of a new feature film written and directed by Dartmouth native Jay Burke that is expected to begin principal filming on the waterfront here by early fall.
Burke and his partner, producer Chip Hourihan, already have been stirring up a lot of local interest in “Whaling City,” the film’s working title.
“We’ve had good coverage in the New Bedford Standard Times and have been actively meeting with a number of people in the fishing community and on the working waterfront,” Burke said.
The partners’ primary concern right now is getting good input and support from the fishing industry, both to ensure the film’s technical accuracy and to help build credibility with investors who are central to the project’s success.
“We don’t want to make the same mistakes some other filmmakers have made, where when the film comes out, fishermen say ‘that isn’t right,’” Hourihan said.
Added Burke, “We are looking for authenticity more than anything else.”
Toward that end, Burke and Hourihan have been talking with commercial fishermen and others on the waterfront and listening to the feedback they’ve been getting.
Ocean Marine Insurance Agency’s Kris Boehmer has read the “Whaling City” script and told Burke he thought it did “a perfect job of capturing a struggling fisherman’s life.”
“They took some license with things to make the story work.” Boehmer said, “but overall, it’s a believable story and one I think a lot of fishermen can relate to.”
Who’s the villain?
So, if the fisherman is the hero of the story, will the regulators be the villains? Not exactly, Burke said.
“I see the villain, if you want to call it that, being the collection of forces that are combining against many commercial fishermen, making it almost impossible to survive no matter what they do.”
In “Whaling City,” Burke’s fisherman wrestles with making some desperate choices that may be the only way for him keep his boat and business afloat.
“This is a story of a guy who can do everything right, play by all the rules, and still lose everything,” Burke said.
While fishing provides the basis for the “Whaling City” story line, Burke and Hourihan believe the film will strike a chord with viewers everywhere.
“This is a compelling story with lots of pressures, tensions, and ticking clocks,” Hourihan said. “It’s about real working class protagonists dealing with real-world issues, not unlike some of the great 1980s films that brought attention to the plight of the family farmer.”
“We’re just trying to tell a great story,” Burke said.
Burke, who is quick to point out he has never been a commercial fisherman, earned his masters in fine arts from Columbia University’s film directing program in 2005. He has been involved with several projects since then, but this is his first feature film.
He wrote the initial screenplay for “Whaling City” while at Columbia and has spent the last several years refining and fine-tuning the script.
Hourihan, who Burke met through the Columbia alumni network, is currently riding high on the success of his most recent film, “Frozen River,” an independent film that was nominated for two Academy Awards this year.
Looking for investors
Creative processes aside, filmmaking is a business and Burke and Hourihan are currently focused on securing all the financing they will need to produce and distribute “Whaling City.”
Armed with two substantial grants from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the partners are seeking private equity investors, including fishing industry members, to complete their financing.
“We know this is a tough time for people in the fishing community,” Hourihan said. “But we would welcome any participation from industry people and can make a very strong case for why this is a good investment.”
Hourihan said a combination of state and federal tax incentives currently available for films being made in Massachusetts provides an attractive environment for investors putting money into small independent films like “Whaling City.”
“We’re about halfway there,” Hourihan said, “and we have just received a verbal commitment from a recognized ‘name’ actor to appear in a key role, which will help bring additional money into the project.”
If all goes according to plan, Burke said they hope to begin filming “Whaling City” in New Bedford this fall.
“It’s a good time for crews and a beautiful time to shoot,” he said.
Industry participation
So, besides being investors, how do Burke and Hourihan see the fishing community being involved with the actual filmmaking process?
“Certainly we expect to turn to local fishermen for logistical support, both on the water and shoreside,” Burke said. “We also will be working with the local seafood processing industry as a portion of our story takes place in a processing plant.”
And there may be opportunities for industry people to act as nonspeaking extras, although Hourihan noted this will be a union set and will be bound by union rules.
The partners are hopeful the industry will embrace their efforts.
“We want the fishing community to view this as their film, helping tell their point of view, which is often underrepresented,” Burke said. “We can’t make the film we want without the support of this community.”
For project updates, information on how to participate, or to contact Burke, visit <www.whalingcityfilm.com>.
Rick Martin
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