The Berlin Film Festival’s closing ceremony is about to begin at the Berlinale Palast where competition winners will be announced.
This year’s festival was Tricia Tuttle’s first at the helm. Events began on February 13 with a screening of Tom Tykwer’s latest The Light. The opening ceremony also featured a fiery and political speech from Honorary Golden Bear winner Tilda Swinton.
Earlier today, the festival announced the winners in its Panorama sidebar competition. Sorda by Eva Libertad picked up best feature film while The Möllner Letters by Martina Priessner won best documentary. Sorda (translated as Deaf) is written and directed by Eva Libertad, a continuation of her 2023 Goya Award-nominated short film of the same name that starred her sister, Miriam Garlo.
Films playing in the main competition this year in Berlin included Richard Linklater’s latest feature Blue Moon, starring Ethan Hawke, Margaret Qualley, Bobby Cannavale, and Andrew Scott. Mexican filmmaker Michel Franco’s latest title Dreams, starring Jessica Chastain, also debuted alongside Radu Jude Kontinental ’25 and Rebecca Lenkiewicz’s Hot Milk starring Emma Mackey, Fiona Shaw, and Vicky Krieps.
Last year’s Golden Bear was handed to French-Senegalese filmmaker Mati Diop for Dahomey. Follow our live list of winners below to see who will pick up this year’s top prize.
Prizes of the International Jury
Golden Bear —
Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize — The Message by Iván Fund
Silver Bear —
Best Leading Performance — Rose Byrne, If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
Best Supporting Performance — Andrew Scott, Blue Moon
Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution — The Ice Tower by Lucile Hadžihalilović
Best Director — Living The Land by Huo Meng
Silver Bear for Best Screenplay — Kontinental ’25 by Radu Jude
GWFF Best First Feature Award
GFF First Feature Award — The Devil Smokes (and Saves the Burnt Matches in the Same Box by Ernesto Martínez Bucio
Berlinale Documentary Award
Holding Liat by Brandon Kramer
Shorts
Golden Bear Best Short Film – Lloyd Wong, Unfinished by Lesley Loksi Chan
Silver Bear Jury Prize (Short Film) — Ordinary Life (Futsu no seikatsu) by Yoriko Mizushiri
CUPRA Filmmaker Award — Quenton Miller for Koki, Ciao