Fish Is Our Life

This unusual documentary provides a fascinating profile of an important segment of the Japanese population rarely seen or studied in the West. It focuses on the small businessmen-proprietors who work the 1,100 family-owned businesses at Tsukiji Market, Tokyo's largest wholesale fish market. With its many small wholesalers and its seven large auction houses, Tsukiji is a small city in itself, with its own unique culture, work hours, and traditions. The video captures the vitality and earthy humor of a variety of people who work in the market, and examines how they, like all Japanese, are increasingly affected by the global market economy and by changes in the larger Japanese culture.