Forty-something miner Tomas emerges from the underground and into a challenging new world of work, in this prescient and surprising documentary from Czech director Jindřich Andrš. 

When demand for coal reaches a new low, the Paskov mine in Czech Republic finally closes, putting Tomas and his soot-covered colleagues out of work. Facing an uncertain future and a radically different job market after twenty-five years on the job, Tomas agrees to take on a requalification course to try a new profession; Computer programmer, swapping the slang of his mates down the mine for a new type of code.

This intimate story follows charming, down-to-earth Tomas through the challenges and uncertainty of an ambiguous new vision of his working life. We witness the diversity of Tomas’s passions, including time with his three children and at the stadium of his beloved football club, Banik. Initially baffled, he soon begins to find meaning in Java, SQL, C++ and beyond, transforming from a long-haired, attempting a transformation subterranean punk rocker into a smooth data specialist. 

Over hard-earned pints of beer, Tomas faces doubt and criticism, not only from former colleagues and concerned friends, but a younger generation who wonder if he has what it takes. As employment agencies arrive at the technical college where Tomas studies, it becomes increasingly obvious that Tomas’s transition from the world of manual labour and into the digital age will require a different kind of heavy lifting.

Easily capturing the warmth and challenges of contemporary, working-class Czech life, ‘A New Shift’ finds welcome inspiration in Tomas’s humble, hard-working attitude, while provoking questions increasingly close to home to any worker or labourer; will we too soon be facing similar changes as a result of the ongoing automation of work?