The drama “Alcarràs” by Spanish director Carla Simón has won the Golden Bear at the Berlinale. The film tells of the everyday life of a family that runs a peach plantation and finds it difficult to survive. The jury also honored comedienne Meltem Kaptan on Wednesday evening. The actress, who lives in Cologne, received the festival’s most important acting prize.
She was honored for her leading role in the drama Rabiye Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush. In it she plays the mother of longtime Guantánamo prisoner Murat Kurnaz. Director Andreas Dresen tells how his mother tries to free him from the US prison camp. Author Laila Stieler also won a Silver Bear for the film’s screenplay.
French filmmaker Claire Denis received the award for best director. She was awarded for “Avec amour et acharnement” with Juliette Binoche and Vincent Lindon. The film portrays a woman whose life is thrown into disarray when an ex-partner resurfaces.
The Grand Jury Prize went to South Korean director Hong Sangsoo’s “The Novelist’s Film” – it’s about a writer who meets different people. The drama “Robe of Gems” by director Natalia López Gallardo won the Jury Prize. The film shows three women in Mexico who come into conflict with the drug milieu.
Laura Basuki Awarded for Best Actor in a Supporting Role
The festival in Berlin no longer awards acting prizes according to gender, but for the best acting performance in leading and supporting roles. The Silver Bear for Best Supporting Actor went to Laura Basuki for the Indonesian story “Nana”. The collage “Everything Will Be Ok” by Cambodian Rithy Panh was honored for a special artistic achievement.
Alongside Cannes and Venice, the Berlinale is one of the world’s major film festivals. Despite the pandemic, the film festival will again take place with an audience. Special rules apply to going to the cinema. The president of the jury was US director M. Night Shyamalan (“The Sixth Sense”). The awards were presented earlier than usual because of the pandemic.