Was übrig bleibt

In Waldenburg, in Lower Silesia, all the coal basin’s mines are now shut down. But while the town turns a blind eye, hundreds of former miners continue to extract coal illegally, for their own business. And there is no lack of customers, despite the police patrols. In the abandoned mineshafts, with no air circulation, the work is dangerous (galleries frequently collapse) and exhausting (the lungs pay the price). But little matter, as hard, extenuating and alienating as the work may be, it is not just Lukasz and Jacek’s sole source of income, now that society had abandoned them to their fate. It is also their pride and the price of their freedom. (Yann Lardeau)