From the Hills and Hollers: KING COAL with Elaine McMillion Sheldon

Watch Trailer Director: Elaine McMillion Sheldon
Writer(s): Shane Boris, Heather Hannah, Logan Hill

About the film

A lyrical tapestry of a place and people, KING COAL meditates on the complex history and future of the coal industry, the communities it has shaped, and the myths it has created. Oscar-nominated filmmaker Elaine McMillion Sheldon reshapes the boundaries of documentary filmmaking in a spectacularly beautiful and deeply moving immersion into Central Appalachia where coal is not just a resource, but a way of life.

While deeply situated in the communities under the reign of King Coal, where McMillion Sheldon has lived and worked her entire life, the film transcends time and place, emphasizing the ways in which all are connected through an immersive mosaic of belonging, ritual, and imagination. Emerging from the long shadows of the coal mines, KING COAL untangles the pain from the beauty, and illuminates the innately human capacity for change. Director Elaine McMillion Sheldon will be at this event to introduce the film.

About the director/speaker

Elaine McMillion Sheldon (Director / Producer / Co-Editor) is an Academy Award-nominated, and Emmy and Peabody Award-winning filmmaker. Sheldon is the director of two Netflix Original Documentaries – HEROIN(E) and RECOVERY BOYS – that explore America’s opioid crisis. She has been named a Creative Capital Awardee, Guggenheim Fellow, a USA Fellow by United States Artists, and one of the “25 New Faces of Independent Film,” by Filmmaker Magazine. Her latest film, KING COAL, premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.

McMillion Sheldon was raised in West Virginia and lives in Knoxville, Tennessee.

About the series

Due to the resounding success of the series launch during 2022-2023, we are thrilled to present the 2^nd annual From the Hills and Hollers: Appalachian Film Series for 2023-2024.

The series seeks to foster a deeper connection between the Athens city and university communities and the cultural legacy of the surrounding region through films that examine the many facets, both positive and negative, of life in Appalachia. This batch of films is, in large part, the product of filmmakers who have intimate knowledge of living in this environment and, as a result, are well-suited for representing the realities of Appalachia on the big screen.

Short introduction/lectures will provide context for the film and introduce the underlying issues represented in film and other media. All events in the series are presented with free admission.

This screening will take place at the Athena Cinema located at 20 S. Court St.

This series is sponsored by the College of Health Sciences and Professions, the Department of Sociology and Anthropology in the College of Arts and Sciences, OHIO Honors Program, Center for Campus and Community Engagement, Athens County Public Libraries, University Libraries, GO Local, University College, the Center for Law, Justice, and Culture, and the Ohio Arts Council.