The motorways coming in and out of Linfen are lined with one type of vehicle. The coal truck dominates, importing and exporting its product endlessly across the nation and beyond its borders.

Linfen was transformed by the Open Door Policy of 1980, which designated Special Economic Zones designed to boost national industries and the international economy of China. The coal factories of Linfen now dominate its landscape through a thick, permanent, toxic fog. Those vulnerable to the effects of these pollutants are scared to travel even to the street at risk of the air that they may breathe in.

In this Vice documentary, we witness the effect of intense coal production on agricultural workers whose land has been made uninhabitable by industrial pollution. The documentary describes the witnessed scenes as if they were science fiction, while the reality of life in Linfen is made clear. We also learn more from those who are practicing illegal coal mining in the region. The documentary poses the question: how we will phase out industrial production when there are lives that rely on its production for their immediate survival?