THE premiere of Al McGlashan’s highly-anticipated Southern Bluefin Tuna (SBT) documentary, Life on the Line, will air tonight, 6 November at Melbourne’s IMAX Theatre.
SBT was driven to the brink of extinction in the 1980s as demand for its highly-prized meat increased. The documentary tells the story of how government, industry, research and the fishing community worked together, here in Australia and internationally, to put this iconic species on a pathway to recovery.
“My father used to tell me about this amazing tuna but I’d never seen one until recently,” recreational fishing identity and photojournalist Al McGlashan said.
“It’s long been a dream of mine to tell the story of the SBT and how the stocks are recovering. It’s an absolute privilege to see them out there again, and to see recreational fishers appreciating and respecting these athletes of the sea.” he said.
Life on the Line will be launched by the Assistant Minister for Forestry and Fisheries, Senator Jonathan Duniam, at the premiere hosted by Brownlow Medallist and Tuna Champion Ambassador, Patrick Dangerfield.
Chairman of ARFF, Brett Cleary said the SBT fishery is the focus of the Australian Government-funded Tuna Champions program, which encourages recreational anglers to be responsible players in the fishery.
“SBT have been an important game fish for recreational anglers in Australia since the early 1900s so, after witnessing the decline in numbers during the 1980s, we are proud to be doing our bit through the Tuna Champions program,” Cleary said.
“Recreational anglers in Australia respect and value SBT and this is reflected in how they’ve really adopted the program and are changing the way they fish. It’s been incredible.” he said.
The documentary project was funded by the Australian Government through the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) and the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC).
