The film takes its name from Billy Middlemas, a former miner from Easington Colliery whose story and presence influenced much of The Coal Coast series. Billy was one of the figures who had first directed Konttinen toward the coastline, and his relationship to the landscape helped frame its emotional tone. His memory threads through the film, which evokes both loss and resilience, grounding the abstract beauty of the visuals in lived experience and personal testimony.

Song for Billy was first screened at Side Gallery and has since formed part of Amber’s wider programme of work on post-industrial identity and memory. Its collaborative nature, blending sound, photography and storytelling, reflects Amber’s longstanding commitment to interdisciplinary production rooted in community experience and collective authorship.