Commissioned by Al Jazeera English for ‘Witness’

1 x 25 minute documentary 

In the heart of Bulgaria’s Rose Valley, Irina is desperate to give her four-year-old daughter, Stefi, a better start in life. A struggling single mother, her primary source of income comes from dangerous work at a weapons factory where she packs gunpowder into artillery shells.

Her only respite is singing, a talent taught to her by her late grandfather, which she uses to sing for extra money in local restaurants. But as the rent and bills stack up, Irina is forced to take on a third job offering high-interest loans to equally desperate friends and family.

This is an intimate story about poverty, dreams and the price a mother is prepared to pay to ensure a better life for her child.