Children of Uranium

Produced by

Tudor Giurgiu
Directed by

Iulian Manuel Ghervas, Adina Popescu
Screenplay

Iulian Manuel Ghervas, Adina Popescu

Cinematography by

Adrian Calev

Film Editing by

Monica Hauler Szasz

Genre

Documentary
Length

64 min

Synopsis Children of Uranium

After working in the mines for decades, the survivors are there even in their dreams: in the uranium mine. However, in reality, in Băiţa Plai nothing resembles what once was. The “Avram Iancu” mine was closed in 1998 due to environmental concerns. The settlement is ailing. From the labourers of those times, few are alive. The once nice blocks are but a ruin. The people live by collecting mushrooms and selling them abroad. Because “who gives you a job, all sick and irradiated? We kick the bucket one after the other.” A black irony – even though the mine is closed, the traces of uranium can be found everywhere. The radiation level is high, the houses are double afflicted: from both the mine and the construction materials taken from the area. There is ore everywhere: locals can find pieces in the road dust, the children play in soil with a radiation level much above the allowed threshold. Above all, an innocent boy’s whistling is heard.