Leviathan

A groundbreaking, immersive portrait of the contemporary commercial fishing industry. Filmed off the coast of New Bedford, Massachusetts – at one time the whaling capital of the world as well as Melville’s inspiration for Moby Dick; it is today the country’s largest fishing port with over 500 ships sailing from its harbor every month.

Leviathan follows one such vessel, a hulking groundfish trawler, into the surrounding murky black waters on a weeks-long fishing expedition. But instead of romanticizing the labor or partaking in the longstanding tradition of turning fisherfolk into images,filmmakers Lucien Castiang-Taylor (Sweetgrass) and Verena Paravel (Foreign Parts) present a vivid, almost-kaleidoscopic representation of the work, the sea, the machinery
and the players, both human and marine.

Employing an arsenal of cameras that passed freely from film crew to ship crew; that swoop from below sea level to astonishing bird’s-eye views, the film that emerges is unlike anything that has been seen before. Entirely dialogue-free, but mesmerizing and gripping throughout, it is a cosmic portrait of one of mankind’s oldest endeavors.

Awards and Nominations
Sevilla International Film Festival - Non-Fiction Eurodoc Award
Belfort International Film Festival - Grand Jury Award
Belfort International Film Festival - one + one Award
Belfort International Film Festival - Documentaire sur grand écran Award
CPH:DOX - new:vision award
RIDM Montreal - Best Cinematography and Best Sound in an International Feature
Locarno International Film Festival -fipresci jury award
Milan International Film Festival -la giuria giovani
Milan International Film Festival - giuria audiodoc
Viennale - Standard Audience Award
2012 L.A. Film Critics Circle - Douglas Edwards Independent/Experimental Award
New York Film Festival – Official Selection
Locarno International Film Festival – World Premiere