“

The PlaylistMarya E. Gates

“Sheldon is a coal miner’s daughter, and her brother is a fourth-generation miner. Coal is intrinsic to her family. This is the story of her people, a celebration of their traditions, a condemnation of an economic system that failed them, and an elegy for a waning way of life.”

“

The New York TimesRobert Daniels

“In this melancholic, thoughtfully attuned cinematic essay, no mountain is more important than the people who are still confined to the claustrophobic tunnels of the past.”

“

The Film StageJohn Fink

“It offers no easy answers while spinning an evocative web of ideas, treating the mineral and all that follows as a religion complete with sacrifices.”

“

Wall Street JournalKyle Smith

“Filmmaker Elaine McMillion Sheldon, a native of the state, has done a breathtakingly expressive job of capturing the strangeness, the beauty and the devastation of her homeland in the poetic, entrancing documentary King Coal.”

“

IndieWireKatie Rife

“King Coal goes deeper into the cultural roots of the opioid crisis, looking at a region both devastated and nurtured by “the King” and asking what a future without it might look like.”

“

RogerEbert.comMonica Castillo

“Filmed in Central Appalachia—including the director's home state of West Virginia—King Coal moves beyond shallow impressions of the region with a real love for her neighbors and prodding questions about what it means to identify with an industry that has harmed and exploited generations of families.”

“

Paste MagazineJacob Oller

“King Coal might not be an invigorating, fire-lighting work like Harlan County, USA, but it is still a startling piece of anthropology: An expression of a place and a people, and their local god, ruler and captor.”

“

American Society of Cinematographers, USA2024

“2024 Winner ASC Award, Curren Sheldon”

“

Camerimage2023

“2023 Nominee Golden Frog, Curren Sheldon (cinematographer)”

“

Cleveland International Film Festival2023

“2023 Nominee Global Health Competition, Elaine McMillion Sheldon”

“

International Documentary Association2024

“2024 Nominee IDA Award, Curren Sheldon”

“

RiverRun International Film Festival2023

“2023 Nominee Jury Prize, Elaine McMillion Sheldon
2023 Winner Best Cinematography, Curren Sheldon”

“

Seattle International Film Festival2023

“2023 Nominee Documentary Competition Award, Elaine McMillion Sheldon
2023 Winner Special Jury Prize, Elaine McMillion Sheldon”

“

Sundance Film Festival2023

“2023 Nominee NEXT Innovator Award, Elaine McMillion Sheldon”

“

Woods Hole Film Festival2023

“2023 Winner Director's Award for Cinematography, Curren Sheldon”

“

Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival2023

“2023 Nominee Best Documentary, Elaine McMillion Sheldon
2023 Winner Best Documentary - Special Mention, Elaine McMillion Sheldon”

“

Cinema Eye Honors Awards, US2024

“2024 Nominee Cinema Eye Honors Award, Curren Sheldon”

“

Film Club's The Lost Weekend2023

“2023 Winner Lost Weekend Award, Elaine McMillion Sheldon (director)”

“

Flyover Film Festival2023

“2023 Winner Jury Award, Elaine McMillion Sheldon”