At the heart of the story is May Murton (Charlie Hardwick), a woman left to navigate the collapse of her marriage, a fractured community, and teenage children (Darren Bell and Katja Roberts) increasingly out of control. Her estranged husband (Brian Hogg) has retreated to the allotments, while May finds herself drawn into a tentative new relationship with the manager of an open-cast coal mine (Bill Speed), whom she meets on the eve of the Miners’ Gala. The film takes a deeply personal approach to the broader socio-economic shifts in the coalfield, drawing on the participation of women who had been involved in the Support Groups during the 1984-85 Miners’ Strike, reflecting Amber’s long-standing commitment to working within the communities they document.

The Scar is the first in a trilogy exploring the long-term impacts of deindustrialisation in East Durham. Like Father (2001), the second film, shifts focus to male experience, examining how former miners and their families navigate the loss of traditional roles and identities. Shooting Magpies (2005) follows the post-industrial generation, tackling the rise of heroin use in colliery villages and the struggles faced by young people growing up in a community shaped by economic hardship. As part of Amber’s broader body of work, The Scar stands as both a deeply human story and a vital document of life in a community still bearing the scars of industrial decline.