Luzzu

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This debut film from writer-director-editor Alex Camilleri takes its title from the small wooden boats used by the traditional fishermen of the Maltese islands. When Jesmark, played by nonprofessional actor Jesmark Scicluna, can no longer support his family on the fishing trade practiced by his forebears, he must weigh his birthright against the realities of the modern world. Should he continue to pursue the meager living of a fisherman or accept a EU payout to decommission his luzzu and, instead, work for the rapacious black market that ravages the waters of their bounty? This compelling story captures a man and a culture in crisis, teetering between the old world and the new. Scicluna’s gripping performance, caged like a feral animal as the twin pressures of family and money close in, won him the Sundance Jury Prize at the 2021 festival. ~Travis Weedon