Bite to Bite: A Fresh Look at Fishing

With the success of shows like The Bear, series such as Chef’s Table and countless documentaries about food, wine, and everything else, audiences have been able to get a look behind the curtain into the culinary world, more than ever before. We can learn about how wine goes from grape to bottle, or how a Michelin-starred chef forages for the day’s menu to create some of the world’s most celebrated dishes. In Kelly Lipscomb’s newest documentary Bite to Bite, we follow two fishermen as they take a bluefin tuna, quite literally, from hook to plate.

From Nova Scotia to Tokyo

Dennis Cameron is a fisherman in Port Hood, Nova Scotia, Canada, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather. Due to overfishing, the Atlantic bluefin tuna was at one point considered endangered, which was naturally affecting business and led to the government imposing individual quotas in a conservation attempt (this has since been amazingly successful in that area, and they are no longer endangered). When he and his fishing partner Lloyd MacInnes catch the one tuna they’re legally allowed per year, they send it off to be sold at the storied Tsukuji Fish Market in Tokyo, Japan. They’re joined by Robbie Schallert, a scientist who has been studying bluefin for over a decade who had come to Port Hood to tag and track the fish. He convinced the two fishermen to allow him to use their boat to tag a fish, and they began working together.

One day, they got the idea to catch a tuna, then follow it to Japan themselves to learn more about the process the fish takes to become the sushi that it’s so known for. Lipscomb and his team document the journey from the tail-end of fishing season all the way to the bustling fishmonger landmark of Tsukuji, interviewing fisherman, auctioneers, fish buyers, and even sushi chefs to chronicle the many lives that have to intersect in order to bring that fish to your table, fresh and ready to eat. Along the way, we also learn about the importance of environmentalism and conservation, the many factors that go into judging the quality of fish, and the problems that harpoon fishing brings to the product.

A Documentary With all the Blood and Guts

One of the first things you’ll notice about Bite to Bite is the beauty of the environments that the story inhabits. We take in gorgeous, sweeping shots of both the sea and land surrounding the Port Hood area, as well as closeup, jerky handheld footage on the boat that dips and rises along with the waves. In contrast to this, we also have to take in the nitty-gritty of fishing, including the blood and guts that come with catching the tuna, cleaning it, and tossing the organs overboard for the swarming seagulls to devour. As we arrive at the market in Tokyo, the documentary becomes a bit of a fish-out-of-water story. Dennis and Lloyd, having never even been on a plane before, are treated to a whole new world and culture, a different side of the industry they’ve been in their whole lives, and the opportunity to try fish in a way they’ve never experienced. 

This is an interesting perspective, one we don’t see in many food documentaries that tend to focus on a restaurant or a chef themselves. A lot of times, those who work their whole lives in an industry like this may never get to see the fruits of their labor, to sit down for a meal that costs hundreds of dollars per person, or even see every step of the journey that their work requires. With Bite to Bite, Lipscomb provides insight into a hardworking industry and may give you a new appreciation for that piece of sushi before you pop it into your mouth.

Bite to Bite: A Good Slice-of-Life

Though there are moments of tension, as with most food-related documentaries, the stakes are never dire enough to detract from the even, informative tone that allows us to sit back and absorb the information about a new subject. Lipscomb succeeds in pulling back the curtain on a facet of the fishing and sushi industry, combining cuisine and conservation into one engaging, informative documentary.