Silver

Without this metal, there would be no modern technologies today.

Since the colonial times, millions of people have died in the Bolivian silver mines of Potosí. In the 21st century, there are still murderous working conditions there, from which the profits are reaped by international corporations. For the people who live in the area, including children, the mines constitute their entire lives. This documentary depicts their daily routine underground and on the surface without any embellishment. It offers a glimpse into the world where survival depends on the precious metal chunk chipped away by the sweat of the miner’s brow. The exploitation of resources is accompanied by the exploitation of people – and the film brings them out of darkness and oblivion for a moment.

Technical Specifications

Year 2025
Length 79 min
Original title Silver
Language Spanish
Production company Telemark, Piraya Film, IV Films
Production country Poland, Norway, Finland
Sales/Distribution KFF Sales & Promotion
Website https://telemark.com.pl/en/
IMDB https://www.imdb.com/title/tt38552697/

Gallery

Awards & nominations

2025

The Silver Horn, Krakow Film Festival
Audience Award, Krakow Film Festival
Award for best cinematography, Krakow Film Festival
Award for best producer of Polish documentary and short films, Krakow Film Festival
FIPRESCI award, Krakow Film Festival
Maciej Szumowski Award, Krakow Film Festival
Recommendation to the European Film Award in the documentary category, Krakow Film Festival
Best World Documentary Film, Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival
Best Documentary Film in the Visegrad Region, Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival
Best Cinematography, Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival

Festivals

2025
Krakow Film Festival (world premiere)
Polish Film Festival, Gdynia
Bergen International Film Festival
Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival
Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival
Films From the South, Oslo
EnergaCamerimage International Film Festival, Torun
Watch Docs, Warsaw

Credits

Written and directed by
NATALIA KONIARZ

Cinematography
STANISŁAW CUSKE

Producer
MACIEJ KUBICKI PGP

Co-Producers
TORSTEIN GRUDE RUWÊ YUXINAWÁ
IIKKA VEHKALAHTI

Executive Producer
PAWEŁ PAWLIKOWSKI

Editing
YAËL BITTON RCS

Sound on set
HERBERT GONZALO QUINTANA ARMAYO
OSMAR QUIROZ

Music
YNGVE LEIDULV SÆTRE
MARCIN LENARCZYK

Sound Design
MARCIN LENARCZYK
YNGVE LEIDULV SÆTRE

Special thanks to the film protagonists
ROBERTO CANZA MENCHACA
JAVIER CASTRO
DIANA CASTRO
SAMUEL CASTRO
JUVENAL CASTRO
SORAIDA CASTRO
ROBERTO CARLOS DURAN FERNANDEZ
LUCÍA ARMIJO MAMANI
CLAUDIA MAMANI ARMIJO
DONATO ORTEGA MENDOZA
HERNÁN RÍOS MONTERO
WALTER ARANDO CONDO
DAVID CONDO
RICHARD PERO
CARLOS RAMIREZ
JOHANNA LIZET VELA MARTINEZ
ELSA VERONICA GARCIA
SAMANTHA ANTÉZANA
MELANIO PÉREZ SACACA

Dramaturgists
IIKKA VEHKALAHTI RCS
YAëL BITTON

Color Grading
TOM CHR. LILLETVEDT

Production Manager
KATARZYNA DUDAREWICZ

Production Collaboration
ODDLEIV VIK

Accounting
JOLANTA BONIECKA
LIDIA PAWLAK

Post-Production Coordinator Norway
TOM CHR. LILLETVEDT

Post-Production Coordinator Poland
KATARZYNA DUDAREWICZ

Post-Production Supervisor
ŁUKASZ PRZEORSKI
Assistant Editor
MICHAŁ BUCZEK

Editing Collaboration
GABRIEL GONZALEZ

Trailer Editors
HUBERT PUSEK
TOMASZ OSTROWSKI

Image Post-Production Assistants
DMITRY BOGOLYUBOV
MARKUS GRAVDAL

Image Post-Production Studio
HINTERLAND, OSLO/STAVANGER

Finishing Studio
EDITORIUM
LESZEK STARZYŃSKI
EMILIA PASTUSZUK
MIŁOSZ DOŁGORUKI

Graphics
TOM CHR. LILLETVEDT

Music Consultant
PAWEŁ JUZWUK

Recording Mixers
YNGVE LEIDULV SÆTRE
MARCIN LENARCZYK

Foley Artists
JORUNN BØRVE ERIKSEN
MARIA BARDAL

Mix
STUDIO MAINSTREAM, COPENHAGEN

Sound Post-Production
DUPER POST PUNKS AT DUPER STUDIO, BERGEN

Translations
MAGDALENA CEDRO
SANDRA CATHERINE DE LA ROCHA VEDIA
MARIA KURTOVA
ANNA ĆWIK
DOMINIKA ANNA URBAŃSKA
ANNA FOLTA

Subtitles
MAGDALENA CEDRO

THE PRODUCERS WISH TO THANK

Yisel Villarroel

Jonas Stubhold

Hugo Mamami and all the miners working in the Cerro Rico, Caracoles and San Jacinto mines who became part of this film

Felicia Acarapi

Samantha Antézana

Mario Caro Martinez

Roberto Carlos Duran Fernandez

Paulina Ibeth Garabito Ovando

Claudio Hughes

Barbara and Zdzisław Koniarz

Patricia Santa Cruz Flores

Sandra Tacuri Lopez and Las Guardabocaminas del Cerro Rico de Potosí

Hernán Torres Abal

Virginie Vericourt

Sebastian Winkels

MUSOL organization in Potosí

Voces Libres organization

"Robertito" school, Principal Nemesio Guzman Leon and all the students

Production
TELEMARK

Co-Production
PIRAYA FILM
IV FILMS

A POLISH FILM INSTITUTE CO-FINANCED PRODUCTION

The film was co-financed by
THE SILESIAN FILM FUND
MANAGED BY THE SILESIA FILM INSTITUTION
ESTABLISHED AND FUNDED BY THE SILESIAN VOIVODESHIP GOVERNMENT

The film was featured at the international markets
DOCS BARCELONA INDUSTRY
FIPADOC
INSTITUTE OF DOCUMENTARY FILM

The film was developed with the support of
EX ORIENTE FILM 2022 ORGANIZED BY DOCUMENTARY FILM CZECH REPUBLIC
INSTITUTE OF DOCUMENTARY FILM

The project was developed at
DOC LAB POLAND ORGANISED BY THE WŁADYSŁAW ŚLESICKI FILM FOUNDATION

International promotion of the project was supported by
POLISH DOCS PRO

The film was made with the support of
HINTERLAND
FILMKRAFT ROGALAND
THE NORWEGIAN FILM INSTITUTE

The film was made with the support of
AVEK
THE FINNISH FILM FOUNDATION

The film was made in cooperation with
YLE

ISAN
ISAN 0000-0007-2DE4-0000-6-0000-0000-J

© 2025 Telemark SP. z o.o., Piraya Film AS & IV Films Oy