Documentary backdrop image for Beijing Silvermine (2012)

Documentary backdrop image for Beijing Silvermine (2012)

201212 minGdoc-short

Beijing Silvermine

201212 minGdoc-short

Over 850,000 discarded negatives, salvaged from a recycling plant in Beijing, form one of China's largest archival projects.

Genres

Director

Emiland Guillerme

Synopsis

Over 850,000 discarded negatives, salvaged from a recycling plant in Beijing, form one of China's largest archival projects.

People

Emiland Guillermedirector

Thomas Sauvincast

Synopsis

Thomas Sauvin salvages discarded negatives from a recycling plant on the outskirts of Beijing. Since 2009, he has collected these images, which were headed for destruction. His project, known as Beijing Silvermine, has grown into one of the largest archival efforts in China. It now contains over 850,000 anonymous photographs taken between 1985 and 2005. The documentary presents Sauvin's work and the stories behind these lost images.

Comments

What are people saying?

Play More Like This

China's Horrendous Electronic Trash Dump (2007)

China's Horrendous Electronic Trash Dump

More than 80% of children in a village near Guango, China, tested positive for zinc poisoning due to exposure from electronic waste processing.

China's Horrendous Electronic Trash Dump

Cash from trash: could it clean up the world? (2022)

Cash from trash: could it clean up the world?

The world generated 2.2 billion tons of waste in 2021, a figure expected to nearly double by 2050, prompting innovative solutions for recycling and upcycling.

Cash from trash: could it clean up the world?

How is Taiwan beating everyone at plastics recycling? (2025)

How is Taiwan beating everyone at plastics recycling?

Taiwan has a recycling fleet that collects waste five days a week, supported by a national fund that ensures recyclers are financially protected.

How is Taiwan beating everyone at plastics recycling?

China Desperately Grapples With Its Plastic Waste Crisis (2018)

China Desperately Grapples With Its Plastic Waste Crisis

Beijing generates 25,000 tons of waste daily, straining its infrastructure and threatening the livelihoods of 170,000 rubbish pickers reliant on recycling.

China Desperately Grapples With Its Plastic Waste Crisis

Know Your Records - New Deal-Era Photographs of the Still Picture Branch (November 19, 2024) (2024)

Know Your Records - New Deal-Era Photographs of the Still Picture Branch (November 19, 2024)

New Deal-era photographic records from the Still Picture Branch at the National Archives highlight programs like the Works Progress Administration and rural assistance initiatives.

Know Your Records - New Deal-Era Photographs of the Still Picture Branch (November 19, 2024)

Hong Kong Protests: Chinese Military Flies Warning Flag as Tensions Rise (2019)

Hong Kong Protests: Chinese Military Flies Warning Flag as Tensions Rise

Hong Kong residents protest against an extradition bill amid rising tensions with China.

Hong Kong Protests: Chinese Military Flies Warning Flag as Tensions Rise

Hong Kong Protestors Seeking Asylum In the West (2021)

Hong Kong Protestors Seeking Asylum In the West

More than 10,000 residents of Hong Kong were arrested after Beijing enacted a national security law that criminalizes subversion and foreign collusion.

Hong Kong Protestors Seeking Asylum In the West

Saving the Great Wall - China (2008)

Saving the Great Wall - China

30 kilograms of rubbish are collected during a monthly cleanup of the Great Wall, reflecting the ongoing threat to its condition from tourism and neglect.

Saving the Great Wall - China

Mass Arrests Are Just The Start Of Hong Kong's Crackdown on 'Subversion' (2021)

Mass Arrests Are Just The Start Of Hong Kong's Crackdown on 'Subversion'

Hong Kong's new law criminalizes chanting this, leading to mass arrests of pro-democracy activists.

Mass Arrests Are Just The Start Of Hong Kong's Crackdown on 'Subversion'

The Many Faces Of Rembrandt - Raiders of the Lost Art S02E03 - True Crime (2023)

The Many Faces Of Rembrandt - Raiders of the Lost Art S02E03 - True Crime

Rembrandt's artworks, created throughout his adult life, have been dispersed worldwide, each with its own unique history and significance.

The Many Faces Of Rembrandt - Raiders of the Lost Art S02E03 - True Crime

Angkor Wat Night Festival: Full Apsara performance of the Royal Ballet (2023)

Angkor Wat Night Festival: Full Apsara performance of the Royal Ballet

The Royal Ballet's history begins in Angkor with the Apsara dancers and King Khumba's love story.

Angkor Wat Night Festival: Full Apsara performance of the Royal Ballet

Charles Matton - Maker of images (2021)

Charles Matton - Maker of images

Charles Matton exploits various mediums to intertwine life and creation in his art.

Charles Matton - Maker of images

Explore Beijing Silvermine

Topics FAQ Stream

Where else to watch

Beijing Besieged by Waste (2011)

Beijing Besieged by Waste

2011•1h26m•★7.5TMDB

Over 500 landfills surround Beijing, illustrating the waste management challenges faced by the city amid rapid urbanization and economic growth.

Beijing Besieged by Waste

Spray Paint Beijing (2012)

Spray Paint Beijing

2012•1h28m•★8.0TMDB

Graffiti artists in Beijing navigate the challenges of self-expression and censorship in a city where street art is often met with resistance.

Spray Paint Beijing

Demolition (2008)

Demolition

2008•1h2m•★9.0TMDB

A teenager in Chengdu states, "If the old doesn't go, the new never comes," reflecting the city's rapid transformation amid urban change.

Ana Mendieta: Fuego de Tierra (1987)

Ana Mendieta: Fuego de Tierra

1987•52m•★10.0TMDB

Ana Mendieta, a Cuban-born American artist, is explored through her performances, earthworks, and feminist political consciousness in this documentary directed by Nereyda Garcia-Ferraz.

Ana Mendieta: Fuego de Tierra

Apollo: The Forgotten Films (2019)

Apollo: The Forgotten Films

2019•1h23m•★7.3TMDB

More than 80 minutes of recently uncovered footage reveals new insights into NASA's Apollo missions and the first moon landing.

Apollo: The Forgotten Films

Browse more like this

The Many Faces Of Rembrandt - Raiders of the Lost Art S02E03 - True Crime (2023)

The Many Faces Of Rembrandt - Raiders of the Lost Art S02E03 - True Crime

Rembrandt's artworks, created throughout his adult life, have been dispersed worldwide, each with its own unique history and significance.

The Many Faces Of Rembrandt - Raiders of the Lost Art S02E03 - True Crime

No digital watch option in your country

Farewell, Yuanmingyuan (1995)

Farewell, Yuanmingyuan

1995•1h44m•★7.0TMDB

Several artists establish a makeshift community near the ruins of Yuanmingyuan, the former Summer Palace in Beijing, in late 1989.

Farewell, Yuanmingyuan

Traces (2014)

Traces

2014•29m•★6.7TMDB

Thousands of political prisoners suffered and died from starvation in labor camps located in the Gobi Desert during the early 1950s.

Beijing Bubbles (2006)

Beijing Bubbles

2006•1h20m•★6.0TMDB

Beijing's underground music scene in 2006 showcases young punk and rock musicians challenging consumerism and societal norms under an authoritarian regime.

Beijing Bubbles

Beijing Spring (2021)

Beijing Spring

2021•1h40m•★6.0TMDB

Hidden 16mm film footage reveals a vibrant art scene in Beijing during the democracy movement from 1978 to 1982, following the Cultural Revolution.

SWK4 (1993)

SWK4

1993•33m•★9.5TMDB

José de Almada Negreiros, a Futurist artist, articulates his philosophy on identity and self-perception through his work in this exploration of his artistic vision.

East with Sonia Wieder-Atherton (2009)

East with Sonia Wieder-Atherton

2009•1h24m•★7.0TMDB

Sonia Wieder-Atherton travels through central and eastern Europe, including Russia, to reinterpret vocal music for the cello and reveal cultural ties.

East with Sonia Wieder-Atherton

Chelsea on the Rocks (2008)

Chelsea on the Rocks

2008•1h28m•★5.7TMDB

Former residents of the Chelsea Hotel, including Gaby Hoffmann and Grace Jones, recount the landmark's cultural legacy and significant events in its history.

Chelsea on the Rocks

Browse more by Emiland Guillerme

View all films →

The Last Merchants of Venice (2018)

The Last Merchants of Venice

2018

Is this your film?

If you made this film or hold the rights to it, we'd like to talk. We can license it and pay you a share of what it earns.

License it with us →