King Coal

Documentarian Elaine McMillion Sheldon grew up a coal miner’s daughter, identifying with Loretta Lynn’s classic country tune. As she distills this unique version of Americana, Sheldon returns to a community grappling with an industry on the brink of extinction as a major contributor to climate change. Blending vérité and dreamy narration in a film that emphasizes the Appalachian region’s natural beauty, she weaves together a lyrical saga in which the place she grew up—and others like it—celebrate and seek meaning in a storied past. At a time when people the world over struggle with what comes next when the way of life that has sustained them grows obsolescent, Sheldon’s emotional ode offers spirited hope that those fading cultures can survive and thrive once more.This screening is in celebration and recognition of Earth Day.