In “Diamond in the Dunes,” director Christopher Rufo captures how baseball unites Muslim Uyghur and Han Chinese students at Xinjiang University. Faced with insufficient numbers to form separate teams, these students set aside ethnic differences, uniting under Uyghur captain Parhat Ablat to gear up for their sole game of the season.

Set in ethnically-divided Xinjiang, the film follows Parhat from rural life to university leadership. Despite internal racial tensions and a decisive loss in their only season game, Parhat’s spirit remains unbroken. The film concludes with him teaching village children baseball, embodying his name, ‘hero’ in Uyghur.