In its jury statement, the festival wrote:
“Rarely has a film embodied the meaning of the term ‘special’ as fully as the recipient of the Special Jury Prize. A sensory and immersive work at the heart of a familiar reality, yet one that has never been filmed in this way. All achieved with remarkable restraint. A visual knockout.”
The award in Switzerland marks yet another international success for Natalia Koniarz’s film. In June, “Silver” received The Golden Conch, the top prize at the 19th Mumbai International Film Festival in India, awarded to the festival’s Best Documentary. Earlier this year, the film also won the Environment and Society Prize at the 29th CinemAmbiente, one of Europe’s leading festivals dedicated to environmental and socially engaged cinema.
The film has also received two awards at the 22nd ZagrebDox – International Documentary Film Festival: the Little Stamp Award for Best Film by a Young Filmmaker and a Special Mention in the International Competition. It was further honoured with the Best Director Award in the Baltic Focus competition at the International Documentary Film Festival Artdocfest/Riga, while cinematographer Stanisław Cuske received the Polish Society of Cinematographers (PSC) Award in the documentary category for his work on the film.
“Silver” has also won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary at the Slamdance Film Festival, where it celebrated its North American premiere. Previously, the documentary was recognised at the Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival and the Krakow Film Festival.
“Silver” takes viewers deep into the oldest silver mine in Bolivia. In the silence and darkness of the underground world, the film follows a boy, an elderly miner and a woman, whose everyday lives reveal a story of colonial legacy, social exclusion and the relentless cycle of exploitation.
“Silver” is a Polish-Finnish-Norwegian co-production. The Polish producer is Maciej Kubicki (Telemark), while KFF Sales handles the film’s international festival distribution.