Christmas at the Bait Shop
Judy Irving, 5 min, USA
For years, "Ahab", a Heerman's gull, returned from wintering in Mexico for the scrambled eggs whipped up by Keith Fraser at his San Rafael bait shop. "Nasty" and "Willie" join Ahab in Judy Irving's delightful film about some local characters and their earthbound friend.

Fisher Poets
Jennifer Brett Winston, 42 min, USA

Fishing is famous for allowing plenty of time for contemplation. Many use that time creatively. Every year more than 50 commercial fishermen and fisherwomen gather together in Northwest bars and cafes to share their common passion: writing and reciting poetry that circumscribes their lives.

The Day the Water Died
Richard Ray Perez, 29 min, USA
For 16 years, Exxon has avoided paying one cent of punitive damages awarded for the Exxon Valdez oil spill. With Alaska's Prince William Sound fisheries still suffering from the spill's catastrophic effects, this delay has driven many fishermen to seek work elsewhere. One young fisherman says he was taught that if you make a mess, you clean it up. Exxon's executives, having other priorities, apparently skipped that lesson.

Deadly Dance Under the Sea

Etienne Verhaegen, 52 min, France/Belgium
Most marine creatures are carnivores; they live by devouring one another. Each species is both predator and prey. Watch undersea life-and-death battles, and, combining underwater and above-water photography, the total annihilation of huge schools of krill and herring by fish, whales, and seabirds as different species join forces to feed.