The Berlinale is a unique place of artistic exploration and entertainment. It is one of the largest public film festivals in the world, attracting tens of thousands of visitors from around the globe.
The Berlinale brings the big stars of international cinema to Berlin and discovers new talents. It accompanies filmmakers of all disciplines on their paths into the spotlight and supports careers, projects, dreams and visions.
The Berlin International Film Festival enjoys an eventful history. The festival was created for the Berlin public in 1951, at the beginning of the Cold War, as a “showcase of the free world”. Shaped by the turbulent post-war period and the unique situation of a divided city, the Berlinale has developed into a place of intercultural exchange and a platform for the critical cinematic exploration of social issues.
To this day it is considered the most political of all the major film festivals.
Check out the award winners and stay tuned as the next cycle for the year’s best films has just begun!
The Retrospective of the 75th Berlin International Film Festival will be “Wild, Weird, Bloody”: the offbeat and the wacky, mix it up with action, thrills, and graphic visuals in 15 selected genre films from East and West Germany made in the 1970s.
Dr. Rainer Rother, head of the Retrospective and Artistic Director of the Deutsche Kinemathek, says: “A longstanding preconception says that Germans can’t do genre. But in fact, early German cinema laid a groundwork that was influential in the international development of fantasy and science fiction moviemaking. And even beyond that, both auteur filmmakers and commercial productions were drawn to genre films over the decades. Our Retrospective showcases pictures, made amid other film currents such as New German Cinema that embraced the appeal and played with the possibilities of a good genre flick.”
Influenced by the wave of exploitation films of the era, the 1970s are a treasure trove of offbeat movies that followed new narrative and aesthetic paths. It was a decade when a generation of young directors took their shot and tested the boundaries between the genres. With Deadlock (FRG, 1970), Roland Klick served up a mixture of post-apocalyptic gangster film and psychedelic western. That same year, Hans W. Geißendörfer turned his sights on the horror genre with his commanding vampire film Jonathan (FRG, 1970). West German filmmakers had counterparts in East Germany, such as Horst Bonnet, with his unusual adaptation of the operetta Orpheus in der Unterwelt (Orpheus in the Underworld, GDR, 1974), and Günter Reisch’s satire Nelken in Aspik (Cloves in Aspic, GDR, 1976). The section will also be showing films by directors such as Rainer Erler, Klaus Lemke, Ulli Lommel, and Wolfgang Petersen, expanding the Retrospective 2025 to include genres such as the biker film, thriller, and musical.
“Modern audiences eagerly embrace genre cinema and enjoy tracing crime, science fiction, horror and other genre roots all the way back to the earliest days of the form. This selection of deep thrills and blood spills offers so many discoveries, and shines a light into new corners of German cinema. We cannot wait to share it with audiences, local and international”, comments Berlinale Director Tricia Tuttle.
The complete line-up for “Wild, Weird, Bloody. German Genre Films of the 70s” will be announced in December 2024. During the Berlinale, the Retrospective screenings will be complemented by a series of event at E-Werk, the new home of the Deutsche Kinemathek.
Feature-length films: Nov 4, 2024
Short films: Nov 13, 2024
Due to the large number of submissions shortly before the deadline for feature-length films, there may currently be temporary server downtimes. To ease the technical load, the deadline for feature-length films has beenl been extended until November 4, 2024.
The Berlinale is looking forward to receiving your submission. In order to submit a film to the Berlinale you first need to complete and send in the online submission form linked below. Thereafter, you’ll find the upload link for the selection screener in your personal account. Both the completed submission form and the selction screener will need to reach the Berlinale within the stated deadline. Notification of the results of the selection process will take place as soon as possible, at the latest by the beginning of 2025.
Before you start, the festival asks you to carefully read its General Guidelines for Submission and Participation as well as the additional regulations of the individual sections and consult the FAQs if you have any questions. You can find an overview of the most important submission requirements below.
Deadline for submission: November 4, 2024 for feature-length films / November 13, 2024 for short films
Processing fee: €175 feature-length films / €75 short films (regardless of the number of sections you apply for)
Date of completion: within the 12 months prior to the festival. Re-submissions are not eligible.
Premiere Status: world premieres are given priority in all sections, however, the various sections differ in the minimum requirement of the premiere status (see sections overview below and the respective guidelines of each section).
Accepted formats for selection: file upload in mp4 format (H.264, AAC, Stereo) – see technical specifications. Selection screeners may not be exchanged with updated versions once uploaded. The film version that is submitted should at least have reached the stage of picture lock.
Formats for festival presentation: DCP or QuickTime ProRes. 35mm and other formats only upon request. See technical specifications.
Further information on the submission process:
One entry form must be filled out for each film. You may submit to multiple sections with only one application.
A film entry can only be finished successfully if your browser supports the use of “cookies”. For information regarding the handling and storage of your data, please see the Privacy Policy.
You can save any ongoing registration process in your account, and return to it later for completion and submission within the stated deadline. In addition, you can use the “Back” and “Next” buttons to check or change your registration data at any time prior to sending it off.
The submitted data will be made available for download in PDF format after the completion of your registration. Subsequent changes can only be made by the festival – please email programme@berlinale.de clearly stating the film number you have been assigned during registration if you discover you want to change the information about your film after you have completed the submission process.
The outcome of the selection process will be emailed to the email address given on the submission form as soon as a final decision has been made by all the sections involved.
“We – festival workers, artists, filmmakers … – think fondly of our friends in Ukraine and we are by their side in a call for peace.
One week ago, the Berlin International Film Festival was celebrating a complicated yet successful edition. Filmmakers, artists, and journalists from all over the world gathered in Berlin to enjoy a collective and joyful experience. The feeling of being together again, with no distinctions of nationality, religion, or culture, transported us in a way that film festivals can accomplish.
While these memories remain fresh, other images have broken into our lives, bringing a darker perspective. The world is on a verge of a huge crisis. As a showcase of the free world, the Berlinale has always put at its center the notion of freedom and the will to bridge East and West.
Throughout its history, the Berlin International Film Festival has had the opportunity to showcase films relating to Ukrainian history and culture in all sections of the festival, recently, this year’s Klondike by Maryna El Gorbach and Terykony by Taras Tomenko, Oleg Sentsov’s Numbers in 2020, back to the films of Kira Muratova and the early short films of Myroslav Slaboshpytsky, and many more.
Films cannot change society and the course of history, but they can help in changing the minds of people. Films are telling us that the world is already in a too precarious condition to add even more suffering and destruction.”
The 72nd Berlin International Film Festival wrapped successfully with numerous audience screenings. On the last day of the festival, Berlinale director duo Mariette Rissenbeek and Carlo Chatrian bid farewell to the audience at the Cineplex Titania cinema (former Titania-Palast) – the very setting in which the festival was held for the first time in 1951.
Despite the ongoing pandemic, the Berlinale 2022 was able to take place as an in-person festival in compliance with a strict hygiene and security concept, and the organizers were delighted with the lively interest shown by the public and trade visitors. Due to the pandemic, only 50 percent of seats in the cinemas were occupied. This stipulation was enthusiastically accepted and a total of 156,000 tickets were sold. The Berlinale also took to the spotlight as a media event.
Iris Berben featured on the Red Carpet and Big Screen at the 2022 Berlinale Opening Gala (Photo cr. Berlinale)
The 2022 festival took place in a different format: From February 10 to 16, film teams from abroad presented their films to the public and accredited audiences at the premieres.
On the evening of February 16, the festive Award Ceremony festive took place in the Berlinale Palast, culminating in the presentation of the Golden Bear to Alcarràs (director: Carla Simón). From February 17 to 20, the public had an opportunity to see the Berlinale films in repeat screenings during the “Publikumstage” (“audience days”).
Carlo Chatrian, left, and Mariette Rissenbeek
“The successful conclusion of the Berlinale 2022 gives us great pleasure and confidence for the future. Sharing a cultural experience is possible even in times of pandemic; indeed, it becomes especially important then. We intended to fly the flag for cinema with this year’s festival, and we were thrilled to receive so much support for this from audiences and filmmakers alike,” commented Mariette Rissenbeek and Carlo Chatrian.
While the festival was able to take place in person, the European Film Market (EFM), the Berlinale Co-Production Market, Berlinale Talents, and the WCF Day of the World Cinema Fund were realized primarily as online formats.
At the WCF Day on February 16, 2022, the panels and discussions focused on the development of funding and decolonization strategies. With its differentiated funding program, the World Cinema Fund has been working to promote cultural diversity, cooperation, sustainable development, and the promotion of cinema in regions with weak film infrastructures since 2004, and thus aims to contribute to the democratization of international filmmaking.
Check out the recording of WCF Day 2022!
In addition, 1,438 pre-arranged and specially planned individual meetings with interested co-producers and financiers took place at the Berlinale Co-Production Market for the feature film and series projects selected in 2022. Three cash prizes were awarded to new projects. The pitching events “Co-Pro Series” and “Books at Berlinale” as well as the talk formats were also very popular with the 574 participants. Alcarràs by Carla Simón was the second former Berlinale Co-Production Market project to win the Golden Bear. In 2019, the project had already won the Eurimages Co-Production Development Award.
The online edition of the European Film Market (EFM) of the 72nd Berlinale came to a successful conclusion on February 17 and Berlinale Talents also looked back on a successful 20th-anniversary edition.
The 73rd International Film Festival Berlin will take place from February 16 to 26, 2023.
(Press release provided by Berlinale Press Office)
The members of the 2022 International Jury, M. Night Shyamalan (President), Karim Aïnouz, Anne Zohra Berrached, Tsitsi Dangarembga, Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Connie Nielsen and Said Ben Saïd award the following prizes:
Golden Bear for Best Film
(awarded to the film’s producers)
M. Night Shyamalan (Photo: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 3.0)
M. Night Shyamalan (South Asia / USA) – Jury President
Screenwriter, director, and producer M. Night Shyamalan has been captivating audiences worldwide with his genre films over the past three decades. His impressive filmmaking includes 14 feature films as a cinema director. His breakthrough, the 1999 psychological thriller The Sixth Sense starring Bruce Willis, was the second highest-grossing film of that year and received six Academy Award nominations. He then released a string of blockbusters with Unbreakable (2000), Signs (2002), and The Village (2004). The Visit (2015) was the most successful horror film of 2015. He could repeat this success with his next film Glass (2019). Shyamalan has also had an equally successful start in the TV sector in 2015 with the 10-episode event series Wayward Pines for FOX, based on the best-selling novels. Currently, Shyamalan serves as showrunner for the award-winning series Servant for Apple TV+. He has also directed several episodes of the series. His latest cinema film Old, which is based on the graphic novel “Sandcastle” was released internationally in cinemas in summer 2021. He is currently working on his next cinema film, Knock at the Cabin, which will be released in February 2023.
Karim Aïnouz
Karim Aïnouz (Brazil / Algeria)
Karim Aïnouz first studied architecture in Paris and Brasilia before doing a degree in film studies at New York University and gaining practical experience as an assistant director for Todd Haynes. His feature film debut Madame Satã premiered at Cannes in 2002, later O Céu de Suely (Love for Sale, 2006) and Viajo Porque Preciso, Volto Porque te Amo (I Travel Because I Have To, I Come Back Because I Love You, 2009) screened in Venice. Aïnouz is also a regular guest at the Berlinale: in 2014, with Praia do Futuro (Futuro Beach) was shown in Competition; at the same time, Cathedrals of Culture ran in Berlinale Special, where he was one of six directors. His two documentaries Zentralflughafen THF (2018), awarded the Amnesty International Prize, and Nardjes A. (2020) were both shown in Panorama. His feature film A Vida Invisível (Invisible Life) won the main prize in Un Certain Regard section at Cannes in 2019, and two years later his autobiographical work O Marinheiro das Montanhas (Mariner of the Mountains) also screened at the Croisette.
Saïd Ben Saïd
Saïd Ben Saïd (France / Tunisia)
Saïd Ben Saïd is a French-Tunisian film producer, founder, and chairman of SBS Productions. His large output of 40 films includes films directed by Paul Verhoeven, David Cronenberg, Roman Polanski, Brian De Palma, Nadav Lapid, Philippe Garrel, Walter Hill, Alain Corneau, Kleber Mendonça Filho, André Téchiné and Ira Sachs. Recent releases include David Cronenberg’s Maps to the Stars with Julianne Moore who won Best Actress in Cannes in 2014, Paul Verhoeven’s Elle which was awarded Best Foreign Picture at the 2017 Golden Globes, Nadav Lapid’s Synonyms which won the 2019 Golden Bear at the Berlinale and Kleber Mendonça Filho’s Bacurau which received the 2019 Jury Prize in Cannes. His latest production is Paul Verhoeven’s Benedetta, which premiered in the Competition at Cannes 2021. In 2015, Ben Saïd founded his distribution company SBS Distribution and his international sales arm SBS International to service his own productions.
Anne Zohra Berrached
Anne Zohra Berrached (Germany)
Anne Zohra Berrached, born in Erfurt in 1982 as the daughter of a German and an Algerian, first studied social pedagogy and worked as a theatre pedagogue in London before turning to filmmaking. After her first own short documentary film Der Pausenclown (2009), she studied at the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg. Her first feature-length film Zwei Mütter (Two Mothers) was awarded the section prize in the Perspektive Deutsches Kino at the Berlinale in 2013, and three years later 24 Wochen (24 Weeks) ran for the Golden Bear in the Competition. The film was awarded the German Film Award in Silver and received the GUILDE Film Award. Berrached, who usually has professional actors act together with amateurs in her films and focuses on the greatest possible authenticity, presented her most recent film Die Welt wird eine andere sein (Copilot) in the section Panorama of the Berlinale in 2021. In addition to her cinema work, the filmmaker has directed three highly acclaimed Tatort episodes.
Tsitsi Dangarembga
Tsitsi Dangarembga (Zimbabwe)
Zimbabwean filmmaker and writer Tsitsi Dangarembga studied at Cambridge and the University of Zimbabwe before coming to Berlin to study directing at the German Film and Television Academy. As a screenwriter or director, she has been involved in several of her home country’s cinematic milestones, including Neria (1991), Flame (1996), Everyone’s Child (1996) and I Want a Wedding Dress (2011). In 1992, she founded her own production company, Nyerai Films, and in 2003, the International Film Festival for Women in Harare, which also gave birth to the African Women Filmmakers’ Development Hub. She is also one of the co-founders of the Institute of Creative Arts for Progress in Africa (ICAPA) Trust. Dangarembga’s most recent novel “This Mournable Body”, was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2020, which belongs to a three-part series including “Nervous Conditions” (1988) and “The Book of Not” (2006). In 2021, she was awarded the “Friedenspreis des deutschen Buchhandels“ as well as the PEN Pinter Prize and the PEN International Award for Freedom of Expression.
Ryûsuke Hamaguchi @Berlinale
Ryûsuke Hamaguchi (Japan)
Ryûsuke Hamaguchi’s episodic film Gûzen to sôzô (Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy) premiered in the Competition at the Berlinale in 2021, where it won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize. In the same year, he also received the Best Screenplay Prize for an adaptation of Murakami’s Doiraibu mai kâ (Drive My Car), which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. Hamaguchi’s graduation film Passion from the Tokyo University of the Arts was screened at the San Sebastián Film Festival in 2008. This was followed by the feature film The Depths and the documentary Tōhoku Trilogy (Nami no oto (Sound of the Waves), Nami no koe (Voices from the Waves), Storytellers), which he directed together with Ko Sakai between 2011 and 2013. His international breakthrough came in 2015 with Happî awâ (Happy Hour), which celebrated its world premiere in Locarno. Three years later, he was invited to the competition in Cannes with Netemo sametemo (Asako I & II). In addition to his directing work, he also wrote the screenplay for Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Supai no tsuma (Wife of a Spy), which won the Silver Lion for Best Director at Venice in 2020.
Connie Nielsen
Connie Nielsen (Denmark / USA)
Connie Nielsen was born in Denmark where she started her career on stage alongside her mother in political Revue and Variety shows. She moved to France and Italy as a young woman to continue her studies and further her acting career internationally. Once in the US, she starred in Ridley Scott’s Oscar winner Gladiator (2000), Mission to Mars (2000) by Brian de Palma, and Basic (2003). She first appeared in a Danish production for Susanne Bier’s Brothers (2004) for which she was nominated for the European Film Award, among others, and received Best Actress awards in San Sebastián and the Danish film prize The Bodil. Nielsen has also worked with directors such as Olivier Assayas (Demonlover, 2002) and Lars von Trier (Nymphomaniac: Vol.1, 2013) and appeared in blockbusters such as Wonder Woman (2017) by Patty Jenkins and Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021). Most recently, she was a lead actress and executive producer on the British series Close to Me (2021). Nielsen is also the founder of the organization’s Human Needs Project and Road to Freedom Scholarships.
The Panorama Audience Awards Go to Baqyt (Happiness) and Aşk, Mark ve Ölüm (Love, Deutschmarks and Death)
Film stills of Baqyt (Happiness) and Aşk, Mark ve Ölüm (Love, Deutschmarks and Death)
The audience has voted: The 24th Panorama Audience Award for the best feature film goes to Baqyt (Happiness) by Askar Uzabayev. Aşk, Mark ve Ölüm (Love, Deutschmarks and Death) by Cem Kaya wins in the category Panorama Dokumente. The prizes are awarded by the Berlinale section Panorama together with radioeins and rbb television (Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg).
Film still of Baqyt (Happiness)
In the film Baqyt, the main character wears orange for her job as an influencer and a broad smile. The “Happiness” brand is her doctrine, but her home is a dark place where brute force has ruled for years. This film shows us what it costs to escape the trap of misogyny.
Aşk, Mark ve Ölüm (Love, Deutschmarks and Death)
Cem Kaya’s dense documentary essay Aşk, Mark ve Ölüm (Love, Deutschmarks and Death) celebrates 60 years of Turkish music in Germany. An alternative post-war history that is at the same time a musical Who’s Who – from Yüksel Özkasap to Derdiyoklar and Muhabbet.
The award-winning feature film will be shown on Sunday, February 20, at 6 pm, the winner of the Panorama Dokumente at 9 pm. Both screenings will take place at Zoo Palast 1.
The Panorama Audience Award has been bestowed since 1999. As of 2011, both the best feature film and the best documentary have been honoured. During the Berlinale, all cinema-goers are invited to rate the films in the Panorama section on a voting card. In total around 8,000 votes were cast and evaluated.
This year, Panorama presented a total of 29 feature films from 33 production countries, ten of them were in Panorama Dokumente.
Panorama Audience Award Winner – Feature Film 2022:
Baqyt (Happiness)
Kazakhstan
by Askar Uzabayev
2nd Place Panorama Audience Award Winner – Feature Film 2022:
Klondike
Ukraine / Turkey
by Maryna Er Gorbach
3rd Place Panorama Audience Award Winner – Feature Film 2022:
Fogaréu
Brazil / France
by Flávia Neves
Panorama Audience Award Winner –Panorama Dokumente 2022:
Aşk, Mark ve Ölüm (Love, Deutschmarks and Death)
Germany
by Cem Kaya
2nd Place Panorama Audience Award Winner – Panorama Dokumente 2022:
Nel mio nome (Into My Name)
Italy
by Nicolò Bassetti
3rd Place Panorama Audience Award Winner Panorama Dokumente 2022:
An exceptional edition of the European Film Market (EFM) at the 72nd Berlinale ended successfully yesterday, Thursday, February 17. The international trading platform for audiovisual content had to be moved online for the second time due to the pandemic. But even in virtual space, countless business meetings were organized and a record number of deals concluded during the EFM, which ran from February 10 to 17. Around 600 exhibitors (2021: 504) from 62 countries (60) presented themselves on the EFM platform, and around 1,300 market screenings (1,452) and 827 films (821) were shown, including over 600 market premieres (578). For the first time, companies from Costa Rica, Malaysia, Mongolia, and Uruguay were amongst the exhibitors.
Dennis Ruh
“The EFM has again created clear, vital momentum for the film and content trade at its traditional date at the beginning of the film year,” says EFM director Dennis Ruh, summing up. “In the wake of the already noticeable easing and lifting of restrictive measures in Europe and other parts of the world, the incentive to acquire new films and content is being felt more strongly once again, even if rights trading still had to take place largely in virtual space this year. We look forward to meeting our market participants in person in Berlin next year.”
The EFM was complemented by a six-day conference program, the “EFM Industry Sessions”, which were held under the heading SHAPING CHANGE. In the three core areas of Future, Diversity & Inclusion, and Sustainable Development, participants discussed the challenges of the film and media industry in times of digital transformation in a results-oriented three-part think tank series, among other events, and thus lent impulses to help shape the business’ shared future.
“We have the tools to drive the necessary changes in the industry. This has been shown by the results of the numerous talks and discussions at the ‘EFM Industry Sessions’. Not least the pandemic has acted as a catalyst, especially in the areas of technology and sustainability,” EFM director Dennis Ruh continued. “Now we need to use these tools purposefully and turn our motto into MAKING CHANGE. We need to take action and align our mindset with imminent change.”
The final event presented the results from three think-tanks headlined “Future”, “Production” and “Distribution”. Among other things, the theses were put forward that integrating technology and sustainable strategies as well as representation and inclusion play a decisive role in the sector’s positive future development. The pandemic has proven to be a driver and motor for both. Transparency, consolidating mental fitness, participation, and the creation of structural and institutional conditions for the inclusion of people with disabilities in front of and behind the camera are also of key importance.
In the field of production, the issue of intellectual property (IP) protection and the still existing grey area when working with streaming providers play a central role, especially for independent producers. A protective regulation might be a kind of “code of fair practice” that offers a solution for all producers. In the field of distribution, the panelists noted resistance and resilience to change processes, contrary to the current trends. Curation of content is the distinguishing feature between distributors and festivals in relation to streaming services.
The full report summarising the key findings of the think tanks can be read here.
(Press release provided by Berlinale Press Office)
The members of the Children’s Jury in Generation Kplus– Tilda Aue, Maria Fock, Connar Beck Lowe, Henri Marioth, Leonardo Urrutia Schwarze, Kerstin Teichmann and Ida Lilli Zschaubitz – have awarded the following prizes:
Crystal Bear for the Best Film: Comedy Queen by Sanna Lenken, Sweden
A great protagonist, powerful and vulnerable at the same time, provided us with her captivatingly told, bittersweet story of loss, grief, anger and healing. This film was a rollercoaster ride full of emotions: sometimes sad, sometimes funny, sometimes embarrassing. The music was always most appropriate and appealing. The camera was occasionally stable, yet also shaky. In a word, the film was superb.
Special Mention: An Cailín Ciúin (The Quiet Girl) by Colm Bairéad, Ireland
A beautiful film led us into an emotional, natural world full of love. The acting performance of the protagonist truly impressed us. The profoundly explored feelings were accompanied by sensitive music.
Crystal Bear for the Best Short Film: Vlekkeloos(Spotless) by Emma Branderhorst, Netherlands
A taboo subject is finally being addressed. Something which all of mankind knows about, but hardly addresses. Stress, panic and desperation just because you don’t have enough money for tampons. That has to change!
Special Mention: Luce and the Rock by Britt Raes, Belgium / France / Netherlands
A sweet animated film takes us to a fairy tale-like, colourful and yet literally rocky world. It reminds us that home is not necessarily where you were born, but where you have friends.
Awards of the Generation KplusInternational Jury, sponsored by the Deutsches Kinderhilfswerk (The Children’s Charity of Germany)
The members of the Generation Kplus International Jury – Daniela Cajías, Nicola Jones, Samuel Kishi Leopo – have awarded the following prizes:
The Grand Prix of the Generation Kplus International Jury for the Best Film, endowed with 7,500 Euros:
An Cailín Ciúin (The Quiet Girl) by Colm Bairéad, Ireland
As many films in this year’s Generation Kplus competition, the winning film deals with the hardships of family life. It is a film with a delicate story full of details about childhood, grief, parenthood and rebuilding a family. The very strong narrative is combined with a stunning cinematography. The sound and the images create a unique atmosphere.
Special Mention: Shabu by Shamira Raphaëla, Netherlands
A film full of life, music and endearing characters. Freshness and energy are the main narrative elements, which transfer directly from the screen to the audience.
The Special Prize of the Generation Kplus International Jury for the Best Short Film, endowed with 2,500 Euros:
Gavazn (Deer) by Hadi Babaeifar, Iran
Through an amazing and poetic cinematography as well as authentic acting, this film tells a story about a boy who uses an ancient tale as a means of empowerment to save his brother. The storytelling was magnetic, mystic and truthful.
Special Mention: To Vancouver (Vancouver) by Artemis Anastasiadou, Greece
A film full of life, music and endearing characters. Freshness and energy are the main narrative elements, which transfer directly from the screen to the audience.
Awards of the Youth Jury Generation 14plus
The members of the Youth Jury in Generation 14plus – Luise Dahns, Christian Fock, Quintus Gramowski, Viola Weiser and Helene Zschaubitz – have awarded the following prizes:
Crystal Bear for the Best Film: Alis by Clare Weiskopf, Nicolas van Hemelryck, Colombia / Chile / Romania
A moving film which, utilising the simplest of means, creates an unbelievable closeness and intimacy. The protagonists and the audience are all confronted with pain and memories, albeit in a gentle manner. How do I manage to come to terms with my past without falling apart beneath it? The film answers this question with impressive honesty and directness.
Special Mention: Stay Awake by Jamie Sisley, USA
Raw and frighteningly concrete, the film thrusts us into an everyday life that is shaped by a recurring traumatic event. Throughout their common journey, the actors and their characters became our confidants while alternating between hope and disappointment. The film left us speechless and agitated.
Crystal Bear for the Best Short Film: Born in Damascus by Laura Wadha, United Kingdom
Impressive and intimate in its narrative style, this short film convinced us and also prevailed against the strong competition. By virtue of this film, we have gained access to a new reality that we had never encountered before in everyday life. In an impenetrable style, the film examines the influence that repressed memories have on our identity. Long after the end of the film, each one of us had something to think about. We were all touched by this film in a very special way, and now we want to award this with our Crystal Bear for the best short film.
Special Mention: Nada para ver aqui (Nothing to See Here) by Nicolas Bouchez, Portugal / Belgium / Hungary
This short film is a work of art! Expressive and rich in contrast to the fast pace of daily life; at the same time observing and value-free, it allows itself the freedom to connect its own self to the images. The film conveys its content in a playful way, mostly without many words, and it invites you to think. Through the interaction of shapes, colours, edges, curves, sections, light and shadows, it clearly stands out from the other films.
Awards of the Generation 14plusInternational Jury, sponsored by the Bundeszentrale für Politische Bildung (the Federal Agency for Civic Education):
The members of the Generation 14plus International Jury – Paolo Bertolin, Rubika Shah, Dash Shaw – have awarded the following prizes:
The Grand Prix of the Generation 14plus International Jury for the Best Film, endowed with 7,500 Euros:
Kind Hearts by Olivia Rochette, Gerard-Jan Claes, Belgium
The first of two equal Grand Prix goes to a film that effortlessly plunges us into the lives of two ordinary young people, sharing a delicate insight in their emotional growth, while reminding us of the unpredictable and elusive nature of that thing called love.
ex aequo
Skhema by Farkhat Sharipov, Kazakhstan
The film is an intimate lens into some of the darker challenges facing young people today. But its strength is in its universality and strong and authentic performances. It explores the vulnerability of teenage girls at that pivotal moment in their lives when they are neither child nor adult. With moments of lightness and darkness — and a fantastic ending.
Special Prize of the Generation 14plus International Jury for the Best Short Film, endowed with 2,500 Euros:
Au revoir Jérôme ! (Goodybye Jérôme !) by Adam Sillard, Gabrielle Selnet, Chloé Farr, France
When this short film appeared on screen, all of us gasped with delight. The dark theatre was illuminated by brilliant colours, strange kaleidoscopic creatures in trees, hot dog dogs, and a fragile man who ultimately plummets and shatters to pieces. To the filmmakers, we say: Thank you for this trip.
Special Mentions:
Blaues Rauschen (Blue Noise) by Simon Maria Kubiena, Germany / Austria
We awarded a special mention to a film that, with just a few neat and precise strokes, portrays the struggle of a young conflicted man trying to finding his footing and his place in the world.
Tinashé by Tig Terera, Australia
Part of the joy of watching short films is to transport one into new worlds. There is an interesting truth in this film, where it reveals something about young people that feels fresh. It is complex and deep — and taps into a side of life in Australia we don’t usually see on screen.
The Homage of the Berlinale 2022 is dedicated to French film and stage actor Isabelle Huppert, who is also the recipient of the Honorary Golden Bear for lifetime achievement.
Unfortunately, today Isabelle Huppert has been tested positive for the coronavirus in Paris and therefore she will not be able to attend the Berlin International Film Festival.
While informing the festival, she emphasized that she feels very dedicated to the Berlinale and wants to participate in any possible way also to support her latest film À Propos de Joan.
“Considering that Isabelle Huppert is not feeling sick and she is willing to support the festival we have decided to go on with the award ceremony. As she cannot come, we will send our love and admiration to her home in Paris. We look forward to having her in Berlin another time”, say Berlinale directors Mariette Rissenbeek and Carlo Chatrian.
The award ceremony of the Honorary Golden Bear will take place on February 15, 2022, at 9.45 pm at the Berlinale Palast as planned. Isabelle Huppert will tune in live from Paris to assist the ceremony and to speak to her audience.
The film À propos de Joan (About Joan, dir: Laurent Larivière), in which she is playing the leading role, will be screened as a Berlinale Special Gala afterward.
Unfortunately, the event Berlinale Homage: In Conversation with Isabelle Huppert planned with her at Berlinale Talents has been canceled.
(Press release provided by Berlinale press office)
