The film tells the story of people that moved into the mine shafts at Bjørnevatn in eastern Finnmark county, Norway during the Second World War. They sought to escape the evacuation and burning of Finnmark. During the winter of 1944, the mines had a population between 2,000 and 3,000. They faced the danger of the German forces hearing about this and taking action before the Red Army managed to drive them out of the area.[2][3][4]