2015 Berlinale Film Festival Awards

In a win for freedom of speech, Iranian director Jafar Panahi was awarded Berlin’s Golden Bear for his latest movie, Taxi — despite being banned from filmmaking in his home country and not being allowed to travel abroad. Taxi was well-received by critics and buyers (Celluloid Dreams has international rights) during the festival. In the film, Panahi set a camera on the dashboard of a yellow cab as it drives through Tehran. He plays the cabbie who interviews the diverse characters that make up his fares.

 Darren Aronofsky and his jury are set to hand out the Golden and Silver Bears for the main competition at the 65th Berlin Film Festival this evening at the Berlinale Palast. After a strong 2014 edition that thrust The Grand Budapest Hoteland Boyhood onto the world stage, this year proved something of a mixed bag. Among the favorites are Pablo Larrain’s exiled priests tale El Club; Charlotte Rampling drama45 Years, which Sundance Selects acquired at the end of the week; Patricio Guzman’s documentary The Pearl Button; Jayro Bustamante’s Guatemalan debut feature Ixcanul; and banned Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi’s Taxi.

But there were also titles that kicked off out of competitionand left festgoers wishing they had competed, including Bill Condon’s Mr Holmes and Anton Corbijn’s Life. The big commercial pics that also had out of competition slots here were Cinderella, and a little confection called Fifty Shades Of Grey. See below for prizes as they are announced, as well as awards from the parallel sections:

Golden Bear for Best Film
Taxi, Jafar Panahi

Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize
Pablo Larrain, El Club

Silver Bear Alfred Bauer Prize for a feature film that opens new perspectives
Ixcanul, dir: Jayro Bustamante

Silver Bear for Best Director (tie)
Radu Jude, Aferim!
Małgorzata Szumowska, Body

Silver Bear for Best Actress
Charlotte Rampling, 45 Years

Silver Bear for Best Actor
Tom Courtenay, 45 Years

Silver Bear for Best Script
Patricio Guzman, The Pearl Button

Silver Bear for an Outstanding Artistic Contribution in the categories camera, editing, music score, costumes or set design (Tie)
Sturla Brandth Grovlen, Cinematographer: Victoria
Sergey Mikhalchuk and Evgeniy Privin, Cinematographers:Under Electric Clouds

Best First Feature Award for the Best Debut Film
600 Miles, dir: Gabriel Ripstein

Audi Short Film Award
Planet Sigma, dir: Momoko Seto

Silver Bear Jury Prize (Short Film)
Bad At dancing, dir: Joanna arnow

Golden Bear for Best Short Film
Hosanna, dir: Na Young-kil

Panorama Audience Award – Fiction Film 2015
Que Horas Ela Volta? (The Second Mother), dir: Anna Muylaert, Brazil
2nd Place: Stories Of Our Lives, dir: Jum Chuchu, Kenya
3rd Place: Härte (Tough Love), dir: Rosa von Praunheim, Germany

Panorama Audience Award – Documentary Film 2015
Tell Spring Not To Come This Year, dirs: Saeed Taji Farouky, Michael McEvoy, UK
2nd Place: The Yes Men Are Revolting, dirs: Laura Nix, Andy Bichlbaum, Mike Bonanno, US/GermanyFrance/Denmark/Netherlands
3rd Place: Iraqi Odyssey, dir: Samir, Switzerland/Germany/Iraq/UAE

Europa Cinemas Label as Best European film in the Panorama section
Out Of Nature, dir: Ole Giæver

Crystal Bears in Generation 14plus
Best Film
Flocken (Flocking), dir: Beata Gårdeler, Sweden
Special Mention: Prins (Prince), dir: Sam de Jong, Netherlands

Short Film
A Confession, dir: Petros Silvestros, UK
Special Mention: Nelly, dir: Chris Raiber, Austria

Grand Prix of the Generation 14plus International Jury for best feature
The Diary Of A Teenage Girl, dir: Marielle Heller, U.S.
Special Mention: Nena, dir: Saskia Diesing, Netherlands/Germany

Special Prize of the Generation 14plus International Jury for best short film
Coach, dir: Ben Adler, France
Special Mention: Tuolla Puolen (Reunion), dirs: Iddo Soskolne and Janne Reinikainen, Finland

Crystal Bears and Deutsches Kinderhilfswerk Awards in Generation Kplus
Best Film
Min lilla syster (My Skinny Sister), dir: Sanna Lenken, Sweden/Germany
Special Mention: Dhanak (Rainbow), dir: Nagesh Kukunoor, India

Crystal Bear for the Best Short Film
Hadiatt Abi (Gift Of My Father), dir: Salam Salman, Iraq/Great Britain/Netherlands/U.S.
Special Mention: The Tie, dir: An Vrombaut, Belgium

Grand Prix of the Generation Kplus International Jury for the best feature film
Dhanak (Rainbow), dir: Nagesh Kukunoor, India
Special Mention: Min lilla Syster (My Skinny Sister), dir: Sanna Lenken, Sweden/Germany

Special Prize of the Generation Kplus International Jury for best short film
Giovanni En Het Waterballet (Giovanni And The Water Ballet), dir: Astrid Bussink, Netherlands
Special Mention: Agnes, dir: Anja Lind, Sweden