The Cod Game tells a powerful story about the collision between environmental protection and human survival. Filmed over two turbulent years in the Polish port of Darlowo, the documentary offers a rare inside look at the consequences of EU fishing regulations designed to save the Baltic Sea cod. While these measures sought to protect an endangered stock, they also risked wiping out generations of small-scale fishermen. At the heart of the film is Marcin Cholewiński, the youngest and boldest fisherman in the harbour. After buying his first boat, DAR 55, he suddenly finds himself crushed by a newly imposed cod-fishing ban—punishment for years of national overfishing. Determined to keep his family tradition alive, Marcin defies the restrictions, encouraged by a local fishermen’s union eager to defend the rights of small boats. The Cod Game follows Marcin and his colleagues as they navigate fear, anger and the harsh realities of breaking the law to survive. It is a portrait of ordinary people pushed to extremes by political decisions far beyond their control—an intimate look at how environmental crises reshape lives on the front line