Private Project

Loki Pete

A portrait of resilience, commercial fisherman Pete Knutson navigates the turbulent waters of activism and education, championing ethical fishing practices and community connections to ensure the survival of his family business.

Through a blend of poignant flashbacks and present-day reflections, the film follows Pete on his 50th and final season fishing in Southeast Alaska. With day-in-the-life scenes on his fishing vessel, Njord, he emphasizes the critical need for ethical fishing practices, grassroots political organizing, and direct consumer relationships to thrive in an increasingly challenging economy. Featuring powerful moments from the 2001 battle to protect Seattle’s Fisherman’s Terminal for working vessels, this documentary not only showcases the fight for economic survival but also underscores the personal and collective resilience that sustains small family businesses in the face of adversity.

  • BJ (Bette Jean) Bullert
    Director
    Space Needle: A Hidden History; Fishermen's Terminal (2005); Fishermen's Terminal Revisited (2016)
  • Erik Dugger
    Writer
  • BJ Bullert
    Producer
  • Pete Knutson
    Key Cast
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short
  • Runtime:
    24 minutes 37 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    November 14, 2024
  • Production Budget:
    12,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    MXF on a Sony FX6
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - BJ (Bette Jean) Bullert

BJ Bullert, Ph.D., is committed to capturing the hidden stories in our region.

Her film credits cluster around regional history and the arts. Recent works include Space Needle: A Hidden History (2019) and Ken Workman: Three Years, Nine Months and Ten Days (2021).

Loki Pete is the third in a trilogy of films related to Seattle’s Fishermen’s Terminal, the home port of the North Pacific fishing fleet. Fishermen’s Terminal (2006) tracked the community-based movement to protest the Port of Seattle’s plans to redevelop the home port of the North Pacific fleet for pleasure boats. Fishermen’s Terminal Revisited (2016) followed a decade later.

A graduate of Boston University, Oxford University and the University of Washington, BJ taught at Antioch University, American University and Muhlenberg College. She also was a Fellow at the Shorenstein Center at Harvard. In 2021, she retired from teaching and is Faculty Emerita at Antioch University.

She lives in Seattle with her husband, Ken Workman.

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Director Statement

My goal in filmmaking is to create works that invite curiosity and explore the sense of place.