Berlinale 2022: Carla Simón’s ‘Alcarràs’ wins Golden Bear for Best Film, Claire Denis named Best Director

The 2022 Berlin Film Festival jury has awarded Alcarràs, Carla Simón’s film about a Catalan farming family facing eviction from their land, the Golden Bear for Best Film. Academy Award-nominated director M. Night Shyamalan was the president of this year’s jury, which also included newly minted double-Academy Award nominee Ryusuke Hamaguchi.

Claire Denis was the Silver Bear winner for Best Director for her film Fire (screened as Both Sides of the Blade at the festival). It stars Titane‘s Vincent Lindon and Academy Award winner Juliette Binoche as lovers who are disrupted by a third party, creating a love triangle. The award was her first major festival prize in over 25 years, not since her 1996 film Nenette and Boni at Locarno. Her film is set for U.S. release by IFC Films [Review]

Other top prizes went to Hong Sangsoo, winning the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize for his comedy of manners The Novelist’s Film and Natalia Lopez Gallardo taking the Jury Prize for her feature film debut Robe of Gems.

The German political satire Rabiye Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush was a double winner of the major prizes, taking two awards: Best Screenplay for Laila Stieler and Best Leading Performance for star Meltem Kaptan. The supporting performance award went to Laura Basuki for Before, Now and Then (Nana). This was the second year in a row for non-gendered acting awards at the festival, with women winning both lead and supporting prizes once again.

Here is the complete list of winners.

Golden Bear for Best Film: Alcarràs, Carla Simón

Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize: The Novelist’s Film, Hong Sangsoo 

Silver Bear Jury Prize: Robe of Gems, Natalia Lopez Gallardo

Silver Bear for Best Director: Fire aka Both Sides of the Blade, Claire Denis

Silver Bear for Best Leading Performance: Rabiye Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush, Meltem Kaptan

Silver Bear for Best Supporting Performance: Before, Now and Then (Nana), Laura Basuki

Silver Bear for Best Screenplay: Rabiye Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush, Laila Stieler

Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution: Everything Will Be OK, Rithy Panh

Special Mention: A Piece of Sky, Michael Koch

ENCOUNTERS JURY AWARDS

Best Film: Mutzenbacher, Ruth Beckermann

Best Director: Unrest, Cyril Schäublin

Special Jury Award: See You Friday, Robinson, Mitra Farahani

DOCUMENTARY JURY AWARDS

Berlinale Documentary Award: Myanmar Diaries, The Myanmar Film Collective

Special Mention: No U-Turn, Ike Nnaebue

GWFF JURY AWARD

Best Debut Feature: Sonne, Kurdwin Ayub

SHORT FILM AWARDS

Golden Bear for Best Short Film: Trap, Anastasia Veber

Silver Bear (Jury Prize): Sunday Morning, Bruno Ribeiro

Special Mention: Bird in the Peninsula, Atsushi Wada

Awards in other sections of the festival, announced earlier, were:

GENERATION KPLUS AWARDS

Crystal Bear (Children’s Jury Award) for Best Film: Comedy Queen, Sanna Lenken
Special Mention: The Quiet Child, Colm Bairéad

Crystal Bear (Children’s Jury Award) for Best Short Film: Spotless, Emma Branderhorst
Special Mention: Luce and the Rock, Britt Raes

International Jury Award for Best Film: The Quiet Child, Colm Bairéad
Special Mention: Shabu, Shamira Raphaëla

International Jury Award for Best Short Film: Deer, Hadi Babaeifar
Special Mention: Vancouver, Artemis Anastasiadou

GENERATION 14PLUS AWARDS

Crystal Bear (Youth Jury Award) for Best Film: Alis, Clare Weiskopf, Nicolas van Hemelryck
Special Mention: Stay Awake, Jamie Sisley

Crystal Bear (Youth Jury Award) for Best Short Film: Born in Damascus, Laura Wadha
Special Mention: “Nothing to See Here,” Nicolas Bouchez

International Jury Award for Best Film: (tied) Kind Hearts, Olivia Rochette, Gerard-Jan Claes; “Skhema,” Farkhat Sharipov

International Jury Award for Best Short Film: Goodbye Jérôme!, Adam Sillard, Gabrielle Selnet, Chloé Farr
Special Mentions: Blue Noise, Simon Maria Kubiena; Tinashé, Tig Terera

OTHER AWARDS

Berlin Europa Cinemas Label Award: Beautiful Beings, Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson