Q&A with Jiro Dreams of Sushi director David Gelb

Reviewed by Jacqueline Kaden. Viewed at the Santa Barbara film Festival.

(Director David Gelb sits on the right with the crew of Jiro’s sushi restaurant)

(Disclaimer: I took notes at the Q&A and will do my best to convey what Gelb had said to the audience. I do not quote verbatim.)

Jiro Dreams of Sushi is David Gelb’s first feature-length film, and boy did he knock it out of the park. Every mouth in the audience was watering as Gelb stood in the front of the theater to answer questions about his movie Jiro Dreams of Sushi, which had just finished. Personally I was starving, not just for sushi, but for more information about the people shown in this documentary, what Japan was like, what shooting was like, and any other bit of information I could gobble up. The rest of the audience was as eager as I was. Right as the Q&A opened up to the audience, hands shot up all over the theater. The first questions were things like “What was it like?” and “How did working with the translator go?” These questions showed revealed how Gelb met Jiro through a friend of a friend of a friend, and how he made the film simply because he loves sushi so much. It became quickly apparent through his humble speech and professions of how lucky he was that he was incredibly grateful and humbled by his experience working on this film. And who wouldn’t be?

Jiro Dreams of Sushi is a documentary about Jiro, a world renowned sushi chef who lives and works in Japan. Gelb spent a total of about 3-4 months in Japan working with Jiro and the people who work for him, shooting them, talking to them, learning about them, and becoming close with them. Gleb laughed as he told the audience that at first he shot with a very small camera so that he wouldn’t be in the way. Then he recalls how, by the end of shooting, they were so comfortable with him that he could afford to bring his massive camera in to get the perfect shots of Jiro’s masterful sushi.

How could someone not become humble after becoming so close with one of the world’s greatest chefs?

Gelb recounted how, going into shooting, he had a basic idea for the film but never realized that it would become so much more than what he thought. Jiro was incredibly open and forthcoming with information about himself and his life. That is what really gave this movie more flavor than just sushi. It was a movie about family and hard work and the ultimate pursuit of perfection. Gleb was aware that it would be about the pursuit of perfection (if you know Jiro, you know that that is what he is all about), but didn’t think it would become a story of Jiro’s sad but inspiring past, his family and sons, and life in general. Gleb had a smile on his face when I asked him what it was like to be in the presence of Jiro as he was recounting such personal and intimate details about his life. Gleb said that it was incredible, and that having Jiro’s friends around him as they recorded was incredibly lucky and special to Gleb. He answered my question fully when he said that Jiro’s perspective is incredibly valuable.

This Q&A was so deep and touching because the film was so deep and touching (for its genre—one doesn’t really expect a sushi documentary to make one think about the meaning of one’s work and life). I definitely learned many lessons by watching Jiro and by hearing Gleb talk so openly and humbly about his time spent with Jiro.