Berlinale: Golden Bear for looted art documentary “Dahomey”, screenplay award for “Die”

The main prizes of the Berlinale were awarded at a glittering gala on Saturday evening at Potsdamer Platz in Berlin. The Golden Bear went to “Dahomey” by Mati Diop, a co-production between France, Senegal and Benin. In it, the French-Senegalese director accompanies the return of 26 looted art objects from the Quai Branly museum in Paris to Benin, formerly Dahomey. In her current work, Diop succeeds in making the 2019 for The feature film “Atlantique” was awarded the Grand Prix in Cannes, to get to the heart of the highly topical political issue of restitution in just under an hour.

And another formally unusual African co-production was chosen by the seven-member jury chaired by the Kenyan-Mexican actress and director Lupita Nyong’o Considered: Nelson Carlos De Los Santos Arias received the Silver Bear for Best Director for his film “Pepe”. In it, the Dominican director tells a story spanning two continents from the perspective of a hippopotamus – from southwest Africa to Colombia.

Hong Sangsoo was pleased to receive the Silver Bear Grand Prize from the jury. The Korean is a regular guest in the competition. In his current film he tells the story with great ease: “A Traveler’s Needs” by a French woman – played by Isabelle Huppert – who landed in Korea and gives language lessons there. The jury’s prize went to “The Empire” by Bruno Dumont, an unusual science fiction comedy: in a sleepy French setting In a coastal town, two hostile alien empires wage the eternal battle against good and evil.

A German competition entry also took home a Silver Bear: Matthias Glasner was awarded for his film “Dying” was awarded for the best screenplay. In three hours and with three different perspectives, Glasner unfolds a complicated family story. Corinna Harfouch, Lars Eidinger and Lilith Stangenberg shine in the drama about dysfunctional and alienated relationships. According to Glasner himself, he also processes it own experiences.

Sebastian Stan received a Silver Bear for Best Actor. In “A Different Man” sees Stan, who was best known as an action star in Marvel films such as “Captain America”, in an unusual role: he embodies you Actor whose face is disfigured by the disease neurofibromatosis – and who, after a surprising recovery, discovers that his life is no less complicated.

Emily Watson was honored as best supporting actress. She plays the imperious superior of a local monastery in the opening film, “Small Things Like These.”

Martin Gschlacht also received a Silver Bear for his outstanding camera performance in “Des Teufels Bad” by the Austrian horror specialists Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala.

“A Favorite Cake” by Maryam Moghaddam and Behtash Sanaeeha, which was widely viewed by the press as a Bear favorite, was not taken into consideration for the Bear Prize. The Travel ban against the Iranian directors had already caused protests in advance. “With love, your Hilde”, the German competition entry by Andreas Dresen about the Nazi resistance fighter Hilde Coppi, came away empty-handed. A total of 20 productions from 30 participating countries competed for the Golden and seven Silver Bears at this year’s Berlinale.

The one donated by rbb Documentary Film Award went to “No Other Land”. The film was made by a Palestinian-Israeli collective and revolves around the displacement of Palestinians in the villages of Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron in the West Bank. “No Other Land” also received the Panorama Audience Award.

This year’s Berlinale cemented its reputation as a political festival. At the awards gala, Mariette Rissenbeek and artistic director Carlo Chatrian emphasized that the festival is against any kind of discrimination. “We are a space where hate has no place.” Already at Opening night February 15th The festival management had called for a Berlinale “in the spirit of solidarity”.

The Berlinale ends on Sunday with the public day. Overall, the festival showed more than 230 films from a total of 80 countries in various program sections from February 15th to 25th. Numerous world stars attended the festival, including Cillian Murphy, Adam Sandler, Sharon Stone, Isabelle Huppert and Martin Scorsese. After five years, it is the last film festival run by the management duo Mariette Rissenbeek and Carlo Chatrian. In April, the American and former head of the London Film Festival, Tricia Tuttle, will take over Director of the Berlinale.

Broadcast: rbb24 Abendschau, February 24, 2024, 7:30 p.m