He jury chaired by Kristen Stewart He made a list of winners that is far from the feelings that the press had shared throughout the contest. Following the Berlinale’s tradition of social commitment, the most important award of the night went to ‘Sur L’Adamant’ by Nicolas Philiberta documentary about a day center that works with art as a therapy for the mentally ill.
A crazy and little justifiable Golden Bear that seems much more linked to extra-cinematographic issues and the respect that is given to its filmmaker than to the film’s own merits. Philibert’s tape is empathetic, but also repetitive and soporific. There is no trace of that cinematographic greatness that an award of these characteristics requires.
Awards for established authors and good news for Spanish cinema
Although you should never take awards too seriously, the list of winners in this edition leaves a bitter taste in the mouth, since there was quality to reward more interesting things. In the end, The work of the festivals consists of detecting fashions and starting artistic currents that will mark an eraand it doesn’t look like there’s going to be any of that at this year’s awards.
None of the three best films in the official section, and those that should have a long run, won an award: neither ‘Totem’, nor ‘The Shadowless Tower’, nor the extraordinary and favorite ‘Past Lives’. The latter is especially bloody, since everything indicates that it will be one of the most important of 2023. Its absence can only be understood by the fact that, by producing A24 and given its unquestionable quality, it will have no problem finding an audience and, therefore, it does not need the support of the festival as the rest of the proposals do.
If so, it would be quite unfair, although it leaves the jury in a better place than if the decision comes because they directly did not like it. This and many others are incomprehensible decisions that will only make sense for members of the jury who are too concerned with rewarding established filmmakers (who, furthermore, are not living their best artistic moments) instead of new and promising voices. They will know.
The Grand Jury Prize went to the bloated comedy-drama of Christian Petzold, ‘Afire’, which both the press and the public liked a lot in general. An award that, although the enthusiasm is not shared, can be understood. With the same desire to reward established European authors, inexplicably, the Silver Bear for best director went to Philippe Garrel with the uninspired’the grand chariot‘ in which he brings his three children together on the big screen.
A little more sense makes the Jury Prize for the depressing and divisive melodrama of João Canijo, ‘Mal Viver’, whose powerful images fly over memory since the day they were screened. It is the type of film that can frighten many, but its rigorous staging and the beautiful composition of its shots will make a certain sector of film lovers fall in love. Surprising, somewhat obvious, but interesting, is the choice of the best script award for the narrative radicalism of ‘Music’ by Angela Schanelec. It could be seen as nonsense, since the opacity of the tape sometimes makes it very difficult to follow, but, deep down, it is a work measured to the millimeter and that opens horizons to new forms of artistic expression.
In the interpretive sections, the Silver Bear for the best secondary performance highlighted the discreet work of Thea Ehre for ‘Till the End of the Night’ (which is practically the protagonist), one of the weakest films of this edition in any of the sections. In a Berlinale in which truly memorable performances were seen, it is difficult to understand the choice when there were the casts of ‘Blackberry’, ‘Mal Viver’ or the luminous presence that is always Paula Beer in ‘Afire’.
Much more successful were they rewarding the subtle and sensitive portrait of a trans childhood embodied by the little girl Sofía Otero in ‘20,000 species of bees’, by Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren. Her powerful gaze gives a special sensitivity to a beautiful film, which is guilty of wanting to cover too much, but which has excellent performances, not only from her, but also from her fictional mother Patricia López Aranaiz.
Otero, 9 years old, emotionally received the award, through tears, from the hands of Kristen Stewart herself. She is the youngest actress in the entire history of the festival to win this award. This confirms the good run of Spanish cinema in Berlin after the historic Golden Bear last year with ‘Alcarràs’. This should open the debate on the conditions for the Goya nomination, since the young actress, due to age, cannot opt for the Spanish Academy Award for Best New Actress next year.
On the other hand, the technical award, that is, the Silver Bear for the best artistic contribution, fell into the hands of Helene Louvart and his splendid photography for ‘Disco Boy’. Little to complain about in this area, since Giacomo Abbruzzese’s debut feature is a stylish visual feast whose textures range from the natural landscapes of Eastern Europe, to the colorful intensity of the African jungle, passing through hypnotic disco sequences.
In the Encounters section, the second most important, the Belgian Bas Devos succeeded with herechosen as the best film, while two Spanish filmmakers shared the special jury prize: Paul B. Preciado for ‘Orlando, my political biography’ and Lois Patino by ‘Samsara’.
The Mexican Tatiana Huezo He won the Best Director award here, as well as the Festival’s Best Documentary Award for ‘the echo‘. The best debut film went to Argentina’I’m dancing inside myself’, by Leandro Koch and Paloma Schachmann, who was also part of Encounters. The audience awards in the Panorama section went to the Burkina Faso film ‘Sira’, by Apolline Traoréand for the American documentary ‘Kokomo City’ by D. Smith.
(Video with declarations of the winners; the broadcast starts at 26:20 minutes)
You can consult the complete list of winners on the official website of the Berlin Festival, below is the list of winners of the Official Section:
- Best Film: Sur l’Adamant (On the Adamant), by Nicolas Philibert
- Grand Jury Prize: Roter Himmel (Afire), by Christian Petzold
- Jury Award: Mal Viver (Bad Living), by João Canijo
- Best Director: Philippe Garrel, for Le grand chariot (The Plow)
- Best leading role: Sofía Otero, for 20,000 species of bees (20,000 Species of Bees)
- Best Supporting Performance: Thea Ehre, for Bis ans Ende der Nacht (Till the End of the Night)
- Best Screenplay: Angela Schanelec, for Music
- Outstanding Artistic Contribution: Hélène Louvart, for Disco Boy Photography
Article written by Fernando Garcia.