Gruff and taciturn Martin (Edward Rowe) is a fisherman without a boat since his brother repurposed their father’s vessel for tourist trips. As Martin struggles to buy his own boat he must also cope with family rivalry and the influx of London money, stag parties and holiday homes that is displacing the locals in his picturesque Cornish harbour village. Summer brings simmering tensions to a head within the community, with tragic consequences. 

Stunningly shot on a vintage 16mm camera using monochrome Kodak stock, Mark Jenkin’s Bait is timely and poignant, yet full of humour as it gets to the heart of a community facing unwelcome change.

+ Travelogue (c.2min)

Footage from the BFI National Archive, showing Cornish fisherman in the 1920s.