End of the Rainbow

A large multinational and industrial gold mining company has arrived in a remote area of Guinea, West Africa. This desperately poor region has a long history of economic reliance on gold. This film is a melancholic portrait of the changes brought by the mine, and of the universal human desire for a better life. How do local people respond to the opportunities and economic divisions the mine creates? How do the local jobseekers and expatriate staff, attracted by gold and the possibilities it offers, understand one another? In case of difficulties, the mine calls in the military. Conflict over the mine's presence is escalating. The gold will be dug from the ground, but at what cost? reveals a world that is changing forever, and intimately portrays the people who are grappling to respond to those changes. This documentary, rich with contemplative and descriptive image sequences, does not rely heavily on voice-overs or interviews, but instead allows the changing landscapes and detailed close-ups of working villagers and heavy machinery to present the story of transformation and struggle. Throughout the film, traditional West African music is used as both non-diagetic soundtrack as well as diagetic music played by elders at the bonfire.