ABALOBI’s Coding for Crayfish, a documentary detailing the story of a West Coast fisherman and his family whose livelihood depended on fishing in a time where crayfish and rock lobster was once abundant. The documentary looks at striking a balance between the fishing community which is often frowned upon and the fishery that is now endangered species.
Coding for Crayfish a documentary by ABALOBI looks at rethinking sustainability through technology for the preservation of both, fishing community and the fishery. It scooped the Innovation Award at the 19th annual International Ocean Film Festival (IOFF) held in San Francisco and became one of the 11 films awarded and the only winner from Africa. The festival sees global entries from all genres zooming in on the various aspects of the ocean.
Festival Executive Director, Ana Blanco, said that all the awarded films were this year are deserving of recognition. “All of our films and filmmakers are standouts and advance our mission of saving our oceans through the beauty and education of the visual medium,” she says.
The doccie is produced by ABALOBI team and Amehlo Productions’ Karen Logan; follows a story of resilience as the West Coast fisherman, David Shoshola and family who live Lambert’s Bay for generations in spite of legal limitations among other issues in the 1970s. While it also looks at the
In this documentary the fisherman talks about ABALOBI’s disruptive entrance into the fishing industry and how the traceability technology developed with the fishers started to transform his career and the fishing community’s livelihood. It also focuses on the illegal and unregulated fishing in the 1970s and its impact on the lobster population and livelihood of fishers.
ABALOBI Managing Director said the award was recognition for them as an organisation but more so for the small-scale fishers they work with.
“They are grateful that their story is being heard and being recognised. There is a desperate need for effective, alternative interventions contrary to disengaging from the rock lobster fishery, and the communities that depend on it. To achieve any form of sustainability, we need to rethink how we get there and have a greater focus on the fishers who rely on marine resources. We have to engage, and re-imagine fair, transparent market opportunities,” he concluded.
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https://www.capetownetc.com/events/arts-and-culture/baxter-theatre-gets-a-boost-from-pam-golding-property-group/
Picture: Unsplash