A jury is considered independent when its members are not selected by the Berlinale. A number of independent juries award prizes at the Berlinale. The high level of quality and diversity of the films are an invitation for critical examination and discerning judgment that opens up new directions. Accordingly the independent juries award their prizes along different criteria, in accordance to the special intention linked to each award.
Berlinale: Prizes Independent Juries
Prizes of the Independent Juries
Since 1992, the international film organisations of the Protestant and Catholic Churches - INTERFILM and SIGNIS - have been represented by the Ecumenical Jury. It consists of six members and awards its main prize to a film entered in the Competition. It also awards two other prizes, both worth 2,500 Euros, one to a film from the Panorama and one to a film in the Forum.
The prizes go to directors who have succeeded in portraying actions or human experiences that are in keeping with the Gospels, or in sensitising viewers to spiritual, human or social values.
Prize Winner Competition 2019
Gospod postoi, imeto i’ e Petrunija (God Exists, Her Name Is Petrunya)
by Teona Strugar Mitevska
Jury statement
The Ecumenical Jury of SIGNIS and INTERFILM awards its Prize to a modern-day parable Gospod postoi, imeto i’ e Petrunija for its daring portrayal of the transformation of a disempowered young woman into an outspoken defender of women’s rights. When Petrunya spontaneously joins in an Orthodox Church ritual for young men by catching a cross thrown into a river by a priest, she breaks church and social traditions. Her initial refusal to return the cross unleashes her inner strength in the face of institutional conventions and reveals God within her.
Prize Winner Panorama 2019, endowed with € 2,500
Buoyancy
by Rodd Rathjen
Jury statement
The Ecumenical Jury of SIGNIS and INTERFILM awards its Prize in the Panorama Section to Buoyancy, an interrogation of modern-day slavery and a uniquely harrowing coming-of-age tale. Rodd Rathjen's exquisitely crafted debut feature follows a 14-year-old rural Cambodian boy as he sets off to escape his family's poverty, but is enslaved aboard a Thai fishing trawler. Squalor and cruelty threaten to crush his spirit, yet he finds the self-preserving courage to break the chains. By exposing brutal reality through its tightly-woven narrative, this artistic call to action sheds necessary light on much-overlooked human rights abuses at the heart of our global economy.
Special Mention
Midnight Traveler von Hassan Fazili
Jury statement
A Commendation is awarded to Hassan Fazili’s Midnight Traveler for its singular depiction of the refugee experience. By chronicling his family’s flight from Afghanistan solely through footage from three mobile phones, Fazili’s film adds urgency and immediacy to the worldwide migration crisis. His raw and endearing images, deepened by his wife and daughters’ determined spirits, reveal hopeful humanity and enduring love in the midst of constant motion.
Prize Winner Forum 2019, endowed with € 2,500
Erde (Earth)
by Nikolaus Geyrhalter
Jury statement
The Ecumenical Jury of INTERFILM and SIGNIS awards its Prize in the Forum section to Erde for its depiction of the devastation of our planet by human intervention – an issue of urgent concern today. This documentary depicts searing images of the destruction of Earth’s topography and candid conversations with workers, engineers, and scientists. The jury commends the lamentation for Mother Earth spoken by an aboriginal Canadian woman at the conclusion of the film, which is an invitation to reflect on our responsibility.
Members of the Jury 2019
Jurypräsidentin: Dr. Anna Grebe
Pamela Aleman
Micah Bucey
Dominique Dipio
Margrit Frölich
Kristine Greenaway
The juries of the “Fédération Internationale de la Presse Cinématographique” (FIPRESCI), the international film critics association, view films from the Competition programme and the Panorama and Forum sections. They award a prize for the best film in each of these sections.
Prize Winner Competition 2019
Synonymes (Synonyms)
by Nadav Lapid
Prize Winner Panorama 2019
Dafne
by Federico Bondi
Prize Winner Forum 2019
Die Kinder der Toten
by Kelly Copper, Pavol Liska
Members of the Jury 2019
Competition
Orlando Margarido
José Romero
Rita di Santo
Panorama
Angelika Kettelhack
Salome Kikaleishvili
Massimo Lechi
Forum
Ricardo Brunn
Eithne Mary O'Neill
Suncica Unevska
The jury of the “Guild Film Prize” is composed of three members who run cinemas and are members of the AG Kino - Gilde e.V. (association of German Art House Cinemas). The jury awards its prize to a film screened in the Competition.
Prize Winner 2019
Gospod postoi, imeto i’ e Petrunija (God Exists, Her Name Is Petrunya)
by Teona Strugar Mitevska
Members of the Jury 2019
Adrian Kutter
Anna Rosa Ligeia Kruse
Jens Schneiderheinze
The "Confédération Internationale des Cinémas d’Art et d’Essai" (C.I.C.A.E.), the International Confederation of Art House Cinemas, forms one jury for the Panorama and one for the Forum. Each jury awards one prize in its section.
Prize Winner Panorama 2019
37 Seconds
by HIKARI
Jury statement
The movie we selected celebrates cultural diversity. It is the story of a young woman in a very strict culture who is on her personal journey towards empowerment – a very weak, fragile person as it seems in the first place, a person driven by her desires, a woman who feels like an alien in the first place but manages to grow and become independent and strong.
We saw a brilliant young actress in a extremely well-crafted first feature of a female filmmaker, supported by an wonderful cast, which leads us in through a colorful world of mangas and family secrets – a film the Arthouse audience will love.
We award the Panorama Art Cinema Award to 37 Seconds by HIKARI.
Prize Winner Forum 2019
Nos défaites (Our Defeats)
by Jean-Gabriel Périot
Jury statement
We chose Nos défaites for its challenging form, content and its complexity. Here we find the dialogue between the director Jean-Gabriel Périot and high school students who take part in a cinema workshop at the Ivry-sur-Seine high-school as well as a reflexion on the history of politically engaged cinema.
As students try to tackle political concepts such as class struggle, freedom, solidarity by re-enacting scenes from the most famous and influencing films that emerged in the sixities and seventies in France, one ponders the failure of one generation to transpose its struggles and their importance to the younger generation. It makes us question the future of Europe and the medium of film as a tool for changing conscieousness and bringing about social change. It also questions the potential and the limits of cinema, as well as past and present revolutionary action.
Although the film´s title Nos défaites sounds rather pessimistic, the film is anything but - making us embrace our defeats, rise above them and attempt to find new ways of thinking about cinema and society, and how they relate to one another.
Members of the Jury 2019
Panorama
Matthias Damm
Elaheh Godarzi
Tanja Helm
Forum
Sebastian Gebeler
Dina Pokrajac
Sabine Putorti
Launched for the first time in 2003 within the Cannes Film Festival, the "Europa Cinemas Label" has been created in order to help European films increase their distribution and raise their profile with audiences and media. The Label is since then awarded by a jury of member exhibitors to a European film selected in the Directors' Fortnight section in Cannes and since 2004 in the Venice Days. Since 2005, Europa Cinemas has been cooperating with the Berlinale to award the Label in the Panorama section.
Prize Winner 2019
Šavovi (Stitches)
by Miroslav Terzić
Members of the Jury 2019
Juha Elomäki
Marlena Gabryszewska
Daniela Zuklic
The TEDDY AWARD – the most outstanding queer film prize in the world – is a socially engaged, political honour presented to films and people who communicate queer themes on a broad social platform, thereby contributing to tolerance, acceptance, solidarity and equality in society.
During the Berlinale the award is presented in the following categories: BEST FEATURE, BEST DOCUMENTARY / ESSAY FILM, BEST SHORT FILM and JURY AWARD as well as the SPECIAL TEDDY AWARD which is awarded to outstanding personalities. Every year films from all sections of the Berlin International Film Festival compete for the TEDDY AWARDS.
Best Feature Film 2019
Breve historia del planeta verde (Brief Story from the Green Planet)
by Santiago Loza
Nominated: Greta by Armando Praça and Der Boden unter den Füßen (The Ground beneath My Feet) by Marie Kreutzer
Best Documentary/Essay Film 2019
Lemebel
by Joanna Reposi Garibaldi
Nominated: Searching Eva by Pia Hellenthal and Self-Portrait in 23 Rounds: a Chapter in David Wojnarowicz’s Life, 1989–1991 by Marion Scemama
Best Short Film 2019
Special Jury Award 2019
A Dog Barking at the Moon
by Xiang Zi
Special Teddy Award 2019
Falk Richter
Members of the Jury 2019
Jay Bernard
Paul Struthers
Sandra Hezinová
Maria Paula Lorgia Garnica
Andrea Kuhn
Fan Popo
Kevin Mwachiro
A three-person jury awards the Caligari Film Prize to a film in the Forum. The prize is sponsored by the "German Federal Association of Communal Film Work" and filmdienst.de. The winning film is honoured with 4,000 Euros, half of which is given to the director, the other half is meant to fund distribution.
Prize Winner 2019
Heimat ist ein Raum aus Zeit (Heimat Is A Space in Time)
by Thomas Heise
Members of the Jury 2019
Wolfgang Peters
Lucas Barwenczik
Silke Johanna Räbiger
The independent Peace Film Prize is awarded annually to films that distinguish themselves through a powerful message of peace and the skilful aesthetic execution of their themes. The jury for the award is composed of seven members, who view films from all sections. The Peace Film Prize is endowed with 5,000 euros in prize money and is presented in the form of a bronze sculpture designed by Otmar Alt.
The award is made possible with the support of the Zehlendorf Peace Intiative, the Heinrich Böll Foundation and the Weltfriedensdienst e.V.
Prize Winner 2019
Espero tua (re)volta (Your Turn)
by Eliza Capai
Special Mention
Système K by Renaud Barret
Midnight Traveler by Hassan Fazili
Members of the Jury 2019
Nora Al-Badri
Andreas Höfer
Helgard Gammert
Peter Steudtner
Lena Müller
Borbala Nagy
Jean Peters
The German branch of Amnesty International has presented the Amnesty International Film Award for the first time at the Berlinale 2005. The prize is worth 5,000 Euros. The jury will view films entered into the Competition, Panorama, Forum and Generation sections, paying special attention to documentaries. The aim of the prize is to draw the attention of audiences and representatives of the film industry to the theme of human rights and encourage filmmakers to tackle this topic.
Prize Winner 2019
Espero tua (re)volta (Your Turn)
by Eliza Capai
Members of the Jury 2019
Pegah Ferydoni
Feo Aladag
Markus Beeko
A three-person jury awards the Heiner Carow Prize for the promotion of German cinematic arts to a documentary, feature or essay film in the Panorama section. The award is sponsored by the DEFA Foundation and is worth 5,000 euros. The prize honours films that address the social and political issues of today and in history with extraordinary aesthetic means.
Prize Winner 2019
Schönheit & Vergänglichkeit
by Annekatrin Hendel
Members of the Jury 2019
Henrika Kull
Maren Liese
Pierre Sanoussi-Bliss
Readers' Juries and Audience Awards
All Berlinale visitors can use the voting cards to choose the winners of the Audience Award in the Panorama section. The Panorama Audience Award was inaugurated in 1999 and is presented by radioeins radio station, rbb television and the Panorama section.
The voting audience can win raffle prizes provided courtesy of Mastercard.
Prize Winner Fiction Film 2019
Prize Winner Documentary Film 2019
Talking About Trees
by Suhaib Gasmelbari
2nd place
Midnight Traveler by Hassan Fazili
3rd place
Shooting the Mafia by Kim Longinotto
The jury is made up of twelve readers of the daily newspaper "Berliner Morgenpost". The prize is awarded to a feature film in the Competition section.
Prize Winner 2019
Systemsprenger (System Crasher)
by Nora Fingscheidt
Members of the Jury 2019
Adam Bebenek
Doreen Genzel
Sigrid Kadereit
Stefanie Klein
Valentina Kouziakina
Dorothea Kreter
Anna Polze
Rochdi Alexander Schmitt
Varinia Seide
Peter Volkmann
Oliver Vorthmann
Hinrich Westerkamp
Since the Berlinale 2007, the Berlin-based national daily newspaper "Tagesspiegel" has awarded a Readers' Prize. The jury consists of nine members and the prize is given to the best film in the Forum.
Prize Winner 2019
Monștri. (Monsters.)
by Marius Olteanu
Members of the Jury 2019
Christoph Beissner
Roman Clawien
Anna Heller
Daniela Ishorst
Robert Neumann
Jacqueline Raddau
Daniela Richter
Christoph Serries
Barbara Wetzel
The TEDDY readers’ jury from QUEER.DE is presenting the TEDDY READERS’ AWARD powered by QUEER.DE at the 33rd TEDDY AWARDS prize-giving ceremony at Volksbühne Berlin. Films with a queer subject matter from all sections of the Berlin International Film Festival are competing for the award.
Award Winner 2019
Breve historia del planeta verde (Brief Story from the Green Planet)
by Santiago Loza
Members of the jury 2019
Oliver Maus
Katayun Pirdawari
Amanda Halbrock
Gerlinde Kenkel
Fabian Schäfer
Development Awards
A jury of three presents the Compass-Perspektive-Award for the best film in the current Perspektive Deutsches Kino programme. The award includes €5,000 in prize money and the director is given a trophy in the form of a compass.
Prize Winner 2019
Born in Evin by Maryam Zaree
Jury statement
“In Born in Evin, Maryam Zaree takes us along on a search for her own past, in a gruesome chapter of Iranian history. Resolute and sincere, brave and moving, the filmmaker relentlessly hunts for answers to unasked questions, in the process drawing us ever-deeper into her story and to a collective blind spot. She takes a stand, undaunted, and assumes responsibility for breaking the silence for an entire generation.”
Members of the Jury 2019
Trini Götze
Jerry Hoffmann
Andrea Hohnen
Berlinale Talents and Perspektive Deutsches Kino jointly award in 2017 the annual Kompagnon-Fellowship. Eligible to apply are directors and screenwriters of short or feature films who were part of the last edition of Perspektive Deutsches Kino, as well as permanent residents of Germany who will participate in the “Script Station”, ”Doc Station” or ”Short Film Station” at the current edition of Berlinale Talents.
A jury, comprised of three film professionals, will select one winner from Berlinale Talents and one from Perspektive Deutsches Kino. In addition to a stipend of 5,000 euros (2,500 euros for short films) for the independent development of a screenplay or project, the “Kompagnon” also provides a mentoring programme to help strengthen the filmmaker’s artistic signature, alongside professional coaching and improved industry networking opportunities.
Prize Winner 2019
Transit Times by Ana-Felicia Scutelnicu
Jury statement
Moldavia, the beginning of the 1990s, in the post-Soviet transitional period: a family experiences the decay of old familiar structures, and the strong mother’s increasingly desperate survival strategies eventually cease to be of any help. Transit Times takes a look at the plight of individuals who are forced to leave their homelands against their will. The visual power of Ana-Felicia Scutelnicu’s previous films instils us with great faith that this current project will also bear her very own sensual and poetic signature.
To Be Continued (WT) by Julian Pörksen
Jury statement
As she lies dying, the adult children of a matriarch learn of her plan to have herself cryogenically frozen. What unfolds afterward around her deathbed is a tenderly observed family crisis, a surreal grotesque featuring copious gallows humour. From his artistic experiences in between the worlds of theatre and film, Julian Pörksen develops an idiosyncratic universe of characters that in our estimation promises to deliver a highly individual and special film.
Members of the Jury 2019
Trini Götze
Jerry Hoffmann
Andrea Hohnen
Since 2011, ARTE has presented the ARTEKino International Prize, which is worth €6,000 and goes to one of the projects selected for the Berlinale Co-Production Market.
Award winner 2019
A Responsible Adult by Shira Geffen, produced by Marker Films (Israel)
In 2015 the renowned Eurimages Co-Production Development Award, which comes with a prize money of EUR 20,000, was given to the producers of one of around 25 projects selected from the Berlinale Co-Production Market for the first time. Eligible for the award are Co-Production Market projects that have been conceived from the outset as theatrical co-productions involving at least two eligible Eurimages countries. These co-productions may not, however, be solely financial in nature. Outstanding artistic quality and a project’s chances of being realised as a majority European co-production are the main criteria for selecting the winner.
Award Winner 2019
Avalon PC (Spain) for Alcarràs (director: Carla Simón)
Jury members 2019
Helena Danielsson
Jakub Duszynski
Karin Schockweiler
The Talent Project Market offers ten producers taking part in Berlinale Talents the opportunity to present their project to potential coproducers and backers at the Berlinale Co-Prouduction Market. Since 2004, the 10,000 euro VFF Talent Highlight Award has been donated by the VFF copyright agency for film and TV producers during the Talent Project Market. In addition to presenting the main award an international jury appoints two nominees, who will receive € 1,000 each.
Award winner 2019
Producer Vincenzo Cavallo (Kenya) for Bufis (director: Mahad Ahmed)
Jury members 2019
Roshanak Behesht Nedjad
Ellis Driessen
Prof. Georg Feil
Katriel Schory
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