Berlin's Golden Bear goes to Farhadi's A Separation

The Golden Bear goes for the first time in the Berlinale’s history to Iran with the International Jury’s choice of Asghar Farhadi’s family drama Nader And Simin: A Separation.

The hot favourite for top honours from the moment it was shown in Competition earlier in the week, the film also picked up both Silver Bears for the male and female acting ensembles.

The film had been warmly received by both critics and audiences alike as well as selling several territories for sales company Memento Films International.

On receiving his Golden Bear, Farhadi said before the audience of 1,600 in the Berlinale Palast that he had never thought that he would win and added: “I would like to take this opportunity to think of the people in my country, the country where I grew up, where I learned history. This is a great people, a patient people, a good people.” He also took a moment to think of his imprisoned colleague Jafar Panahi who had been prevented from coming to Berlin to serve on the International Jury. ”I really think his problems will soon be solved and I hope he will be standing here next year,” Farhadi declared.

Farhadi had previously won the Silver Bear for Best Direction for About Elly at the 2009 Berlinale.

Nader And Simin: A Separation, which also won the prizes of the Ecumenical Jury and the Berliner Morgenpost’s Readers’ Jury, took home five prizes last week at the Fajr International Film Festival in Tehran.

This year, Asghar Farhadi will be spending six months in the German capital as a guest of the Berlin Artists Programme of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD)

Meanwhile, the other critics’ favourite in this year’s Competition, Bela Tarr’s The Turin Horse, was awarded the Grand Prix of the Jury.

The International Jury also gave prizes to the two German films incompetition: Ulrich Köhler received the Silver Bear for Best Direction for his Africa-set Sleeping Sickness, while Andres Veiel’s first fiction film If Not Us, Who picked up the Alfred Bauer Prize which recognises new perspectives in the art of film.

At the same time, the jury took the liberty this year of awarding the Silver Bear for an outstanding artistic contribution ex aequo to two people: The Prize’s cinematographer Wojciech Staron and the same film’s production designer Barbara Enriquez.

Finally, a popular decision was the Silver Bear for Best Screenplay for the screenwriting duo of Joshua Marston and Andamion Murataj for the Albania-set drama The Forgiveness Of Blood.

In other prizes, the Best First Feature award (with Euros 50,000) went to On the Ice by Andrew Okpeaha MacLean.

Speaking to the audience in the Berlinale Palast before announcing the awards, jury president Isabella Rossellini said that the selection of films in the Competition had been “outstanding” and the time spent with her jury colleagues “a marvellious learning experience”. She added that the jury decisions were “quite unanimous” and said that “Berlin has become one of my favourite cities.”

A first in the Berlinale’s 60-plus year history, the awards ceremony was followed by the screening of the Golden Bear winner instead of a separate closing film.

The complete list of winners can be found at www.berlinale.de

International Jury Prizes

GOLDEN BEAR
Nader And Simin, A Separation by Asghar Farhadi

JURY GRAND PRIX-SILVER BEAR
The Turin Horse by Béla Tarr

SILVER BEAR FOR BEST DIRECTOR
Ulrich Köhler for Sleeping Sickness

SILVER BEAR FOR BEST ACTRESS
to the actress-ensemble in Nader And Simin, A Separation by Asghar Farhadi

SILVER BEAR FOR BEST ACTOR
to the actor-ensemble in Nader And Simin, A Separation by Asghar Farhadi

SILVER BEAR FOR AN OUTSTANDING ARTISTIC ACHIEVEMENT
Wojciech Staron for the camera in The Prize
ex aequo
Barbara Enriquez for the production design in The Prize

SILVER BEAR FOR THE BEST SCRIPT
Joshua Marston and Andamion Murataj for The Forgiveness of Blood

ALFRED BAUER PRIZE, for a work of particular innovation
If Not Us, Who by Andres Veiel

BEST FIRST FEATURE AWARD
On the Ice by Andrew Okpeaha MacLean
SPECIAL MENTION to The Guard by John Michael McDonagh and The Fatherless by Marie Kreutzer

SHORT FILM GOLDEN BEAR
Night Fishing (Paranmanjang) by PARKing CHANce (PARK Chan-wook, PARK Chan-kyong)
Night Fishing

SHORT JURY PRIZE - SILVER BEAR
Broken Night (Pu-Seo-Jin Bam) by Yang Hyo-joo

SHORT SPECIAL MENTION
Questions To My Father (Fragen an meinen Vater) by Konrad Mühe

EFA SHORT FILM NOMINEE BERLIN
The Unliving (Återfödelsen) by Hugo Lilja

DAAD SHORT FILM PRIZE
The Shower (La Ducha) by Maria José San Martín

GENERATION KPLUS CRYSTAL BEAR
The Liverpool Goalie (Keeper’n til Liverpool) by Arild Andresen

GENERATION KPLUS SPECIAL MENTION
The Flood (Mabul) by Guy Nattiv

GENERATION KPLUS CRYSTAL BEAR FOR THE BEST SHORT
Lily by Kasimir Burgess

GENERATION KPLUS SHORT SPECIAL MENTION
Minnie Loves Junior by Andy Mullins, Matthew Mullins

GENERATION 14PLUS CRYSTAL BEAR
On the Ice by Andrew Okpeaha MacLean

SPECIAL MENTION
She Monkeys (Apflickorna) by Lisa Aschan

CRYSTAL BEAR FOR THE BEST SHORT
Manurewa by Sam Peacocke

SPECIAL MENTION
Get Real! by Evert de Beijer

THE GRAND PRIX OF THE DEUTSCHES KINDERHILFSWERK FOR THE BEST FILM
Tomorrow Will Be Better (Jutro bedzie lepiej) by Dorata Kedzierzawska

SPECIAL MENTION
The Liverpool Goalie by Arild Andresen

THE SPECIAL PRIZE OF THE DEUTSCHES KINDERHILFSWERK FOR THE BEST SHORT FILM
Land Of The Heroes by Sahim Omar Kalifa

SPECIAL MENTION
Sunday (Dimanche) by Patrick Doyon
19.02.2011

PRIZES OF THE ECUMENICAL JURY
Competition: Nader And Simin, A Separation by Asghar Farhadi
Special Mention The Forgiveness Of Blood by Joshua Marston
Panorama Invisible (Lo Roim Alaich) by Michal Aviad
Special Mention Barzakh by Mantas Kvedaravicius
Forum Familiar Grounds (En terrains connus) by Stéphane Lafleur
Special Mention An Angel in Doel (De Engel van Doel) by Tom Fassaert

FIPRESCI PRIZES
Competition The Turin Horse by Béla Tarr
Panorama Top Floor Left Wing (Dernier étage gauche gauche) by Angelo Cianci
Forum Heaven’s Story by Zeze Takahisa

PRIZE OF THE GUILD OF GERMAN ART HOUSE CINEMAS
If Not Us, Who (Wer wenn nicht wir) by Andres Veiel

C.I.C.A.E. PRIZE
Panorama Here by Braden King
Forum Amnesty (Amnistia) by Bujar Alimani

LABEL EUROPA CINEMAS
Above Us Only Sky (Über uns das All) by Jan Schomburg

TEDDY AWARDS
Best Feature Film Absent (Ausente) by Marco Berger
Best Documentary Film The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye by Marie Losier
Best Short Film Generationsby Barbara Hammer, Gina Carducci
ex aequo
Maya Deren’s Sink by Barbara Hammer
Teddy Jury Award Tomboy by Céline Sciamma

DIALOGUE EN PERSPECTIVE
The Education (Die Ausbildung) by Dirk Lütter

CALIGARI FILM PRIZE
The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye by Marie Losier

NETPAC PRIZE
Heaven’s Story by Zeze Takahisa
Special Mention
Halaw (Ways of the Sea) by Sheron Dayoc

PEACE FILM AWARD
Tomorrow will be better (Jutro bedzie lepiej) by Dorota Kedzierzawska
Special Mention
Nader And Simin, A Separation by Asghar Farhadi

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL FILM PRIZE
Barzakh by Mantas Kvedaravicius

FEMINA FILM PRIZE
Julia Brandes for the costumes in Lollipop Monster

CINEMA FAIRBINDET PRIZE
Wind & Fog (Bad o Meh) by Mohammad Ali Talebi

READERS’ JURIES AND AUDIENCE AWARDS
PanoramaAudienceAward PPP - fiction
Even The Rain Tby Icíar Bollaín
PanoramaAudienceAward PPP - documentary
In Heaven Underground - The Weissensee Jewish Cemetery by Britta Wauer
BERLINER MORGENPOST READERS’ PRIZE
Nader And Simin, A Separation by Asghar Farhadi
TAGESSPIEGEL READERS’ PRIZE
Matchmaking Mayor (Nesvatbov) by Erika Hníková
SIEGESSÄULE READERS’ AWARD
Harvest (Stadt Land Fluss) by Benjamin Cantu

PRIZE OF THE BERLINALE TALENT CAMPUS
SCORE COMPETITION
Felix Rösch (Germany)

BERLIN TODAY AWARD
Kyoko Miyake (UK/Japan) for Hackney Lullabies