The story centers around Ignat (Vladimir Mashkov), a decorated war hero and former tank driver, who arrives at a remote labor camp in Siberia. The camp is home to a motley crew of war veterans, prisoners, and refugees, all struggling to rebuild their lives in the war’s wake. Ignat’s arrival stirs up the community, especially when he discovers a German steam engine hidden in the forest, and with it, a young German woman named Elsa (Anjorka Strechel) who has been living in isolation.