Lucas Cinemas 4 in Maysville will be one of 25 theaters in the nation opening a thriller movie about the coal mining industry.
“Mine 9” is the story of nine Appalachian coal miners who find themselves trapped two miles underground after a methane explosion. The miners only have a one-hour supply of oxygen while they try to escape the mine.
The movie comes from independent film maker Eddie Mensore, who was raised in West Virginia around coal miners.
Mensore said he knew he wanted to use coal mining as a backdrop for his movie.
“I grew up in West Virginia,” he said. “Everyone knows of coal mines, coal mine accidents and what coal miners provide for all of us. I’ve always known about coal miners, but as a filmmaker, I really believed no one has ever really made a contained claustrophobic movie about being in a coal mine. I like making dramas and thrillers and I knew I wanted to use a coal mining disaster as the backdrop for a movie.”
Mensore said he also knew he wanted it to be something that presented coal miners as accurately as possible.
“I wanted it to be a way for people on the outside looking in to look at coal miners in a new light for what they provide for us,” he said. “I wanted it to be a backdrop, but I also wanted it to be done in a respectful way. I never wanted a movie that would stereotype coal miners.”
According to Mensore, one of the most difficult parts to create a movie like this is to get on property.
“We had roughly two days to film exterior and go underground to film in a coal mine,” he said. “We were in Buchanan, Va. The mine is one of those old mines that’s about four feet high. You’re on your knees, so that was quite difficult. Getting on the coal mine property was a hurdle that took years to get permission.”
Once filming was finished inside the mine, the crew had to go to Atlanta, Ga. and recreate the set.
“Then we shot the movie on a set that was four foot tall,” he said. “Crawling around all day – making a movie was hard enough, but shooting a movie in a four foot tall set was difficult.”
The movie opens on April 12 in 25 theaters and will expand to more theaters later.
“When I finished the cut, I was just proud,” he said. “I wanted to paint coal miners as heroes. Coal miners provide a service for us. I’m not a coal miner and I don’t have family who are coal miners, but growing up in West Virginia, I know what they do. This isn’t a political agenda here. We’re trying to tell a claustrophobic thriller and let people on the outside see these people for what they provide for us.”
Maysville was chosen as one of the locations for the limited release due to the location.
“It’s close enough to the region that it has a demand there,” Mensore said.“For a studio like us, it’s hard to play in any theater. So, we’re starting in 25 screens in nine states. In week two, we expand to Atlanta, Ga. and Chicago, Ill. On week three, we’re in New Orleans and at the end of it, we will end up in Los Angeles and New York. But, it’s a very small film and we would be hard pressed to get a nationwide release.”
The trailer for the movie can be found by visiting https://vimeo.com/294807332. More information on the movie can also be found by visiting http://www.mine9movie.com.
Tickets for the Maysville showing can be purchased by visiting https://lucascinemas.com/.
