ORF-E
German, Japanese with English Subtitles
1 episode x 52 mins
Available worldwide except for Germany and France

It is August. The temperature has reached 40 degrees; the air is heavy, hot, and humid. It has not rained for weeks, and the river is running low. A worrying sign for Adachi Youichiro. His family has been fishing for ayu for over 500 years, and he is one of only nine cormorant fishermen in Japan permitted to supply the Emperor. Eight times a year, an imperial envoy travels from Tokyo to inspect the catch and deliver it to the palace. The next visit is just two days away. But in this oppressive heat and with so little rainfall, the fish retreat to the depths of the river. For days, Adachi’s cormorants have managed to catch only a handful of ayu between them. To present such a meagre catch to the Emperor would be a source of deep shame. The pressure is mounting. Adachi therefore turns his full attention to his 18 cormorants — his most important partners. They require constant care: claws must be trimmed, beaks sharpened, and their pool kept clean. There is little time left for a private life, and plenty of time to reflect. The craft has always been passed from father to son. But should he burden his son Toichiro, who now has a stable office job in the city, with such a demanding inheritance? Is he ready? And will there even be fish left in the Nagara River in years to come? Or is this where a centuries-old family tradition comes to an end?