Tie Xi Qu: West of the Tracks

A patient, unflinching documentary portrait of industrial collapse and working-class displacement in post-socialist China, told through intimate observation of families navigating economic ruin.

A detailed look at the gradual decline of Shenyang’s industrial Tiexi district, an area that was once a vibrant example of China’s socialist economy. But industry is changing, and the factories of Tiexi are closing. Director Wang Bing introduces us to some of the workers affected by the closures, and to their families.