DocSunday at LAHIFF: From Fish Harbor to World War II

The story behind The Smell of Money Documentary

The film’s producers call The Smell of Money a tribute to the historic fishing and canning industries at the Port of Los Angeles and preserve that history for posterity in the Los Angeles Maritime Museum’s permanent exhibit, “Caught, Canned, and Eaten: The History of San Pedro’s Tuna Canning Industry” that opened in 2007.

Jack Baric’s producer credits include A Place Among the Dead (2020), City Divided (2013), Bloody Thursday (2009), Searching for a Storm (2009), and Port Town (2006). 

The San Pedro-born producer spoke with Random Lengths about the documentary film, which will be featured on DocSunday at the Los Angeles Harbor International Film Festival. 

“If you get around people who were of that era, the middle part of the 20th century and they talk about the fishing and canning industry, you will often hear them chuckle and say, you know, it might have been stinky in San Pedro, but that was the smell of money,” Baric explained. “It’s kind of like a catchphrase that a lot of people in that industry used to describe the fact that although it caused an unpleasant aroma sometimes, it also meant that people were making money and people were putting food on the table.” 

Indeed, in the period between the construction of Fish Harbor in 1915 and World War II, stories abound of fishermen bringing in hauls that could change the fortunes of an entire family during those times. 

“We didn’t put this in the film, but there are folks that I’ve also talked to about how a lot of the fishermen would donate one of their tons of fish. And that was what was used to build Mary Star [of the Sea Catholic Church],” Baric explained. “The industry played a very, very significant role in the foundation of our community.”

Baric discussed two major pieces of the story about fishing at the Port of Los Angeles. 

“Two significant things can be noted about the Japanese fishermen,” Baric began. “First, in the early part of the 20th century, the Japanese fishermen introduced the bamboo poles used for longline fishing. Before they were catching fish with nets, they were doing it with poles. That was a technology, if you will, an old-fashioned technology … but a technology that was brought to our area by the Japanese.” 

The second part was the incarceration of Japanese fishermen during World War II inside internment camps after they were dispossessed of their savings and property.

“World War II was both the best and worst thing that happened to our local fishing industry,” Baric said. “The worst thing is that we very unjustly robbed the Japanese fishermen of their livelihood. The best thing that happened is that the United States government used canned tuna to feed the troops and that’s how many of them developed a taste for it. And that led to the boom in the 1950s.” 

The documentary is 30 minutes long. Baric explained that the project was initially only supposed to be 15 minutes long. 

“It wasn’t commissioned to be something that was super, super long,” Baric said. “It already grew to 30 and that was as big as it was going to get. That’s the filmmaker’s decision.”

Baric noted that this wasn’t a project he could dedicate an entire year to make a full-fledged 90-minute documentary. 

“It’s unfortunate because it’s a topic that is really interesting,” Baric said. “Ask five people their opinions on the demise of the fishing industry, and you will get various answers. More environmental people would say overfishing depleted the ocean of fish.” 

Baric continued, noting that some people are saying no, there was no overfishing, it was just overreach by the government with regulation. 

“According to most of the people I spoke with, the decline of the fishing industry was more economic. It was the fact that you could inexpensively catch and can tuna in other parts of the world. And so we, just like in manufacturing, lost our fishing industry, when all those pioneers that started the industry in San Pedro started selling their companies to multinationals ― multinationals that now no longer had any sort of loyalty to the local community. They just went and found the fish wherever they could, at the cheapest price they could, that wasn’t in our waters.” 

Longline

Filmmaker Dinko Bozanic lives on the island of Vis in a village called Komiža. Bozanic made a documentary film about Longline fishermen who go out into their local waters and catch different types of fish, based on what was available. 

Baric praised the cinematography, exclaiming it was beautifully shot. 

“You really see what they do out there. It’s pretty fascinating because the film shows this big wheel spins out a line and goes out into the sea. In the film, it is indicated that the lines are 10 miles long. 

“So imagine going out fishing with your fishing pole and having your line being able to extend 10 miles into the sea with hooks every … I don’t know how many feet apart …  you kind of learn how fishermen in other parts of the world still to this day catch their fish,” Baric said.

Closing Day of LAHIFF DocSunday 

Time: 2:45p.m, March 17

Cost: No charge, reservations requested https://LAHIFFDocSunday.eventbrite.com

Venue: Cabrillo Marine Aquarium – San Pedro – Port of Los Angeles (POLA)