# 48th Berlin International Film Festival

The 48th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 11 to 22 February 1998. The festival opened with the Irish film The Boxer by Jim Sheridan. Francis Ford Coppola's The Rainmaker was selected as the closing night film.
The Golden Bear was awarded to Central Station directed by Walter Salles. The retrospective was dedicated to Siodmak Bros., titled Siodmak Bros. Berlin – London – Paris – Hollywood was shown at the festival.

## Juries

The following people were announced as being on the jury for the festival:
* Ben Kingsley, British actor - Jury President
* Senta Berger, Austrian actress and producer
* Li Cheuk-to, Hong Kong art director of the Hong Kong International Film Festival
* Leslie Cheung, Hong Kong actor and musician
* Héctor Olivera, Argentinian filmmaker
* Helmut Dietl, German filmmaker
* Brigitte Roüan, French filmmaker and actress
* Annette Insdorf, French producer
* Maya Turovskaya, Ukrainian historian and film critic
* Maurizio Nichetti, Italian actor, filmmaker and producer
* Michael Williams-Jones, British president of Miramax Films

## Official Sections
### Main Competition

The following films were for the main competition:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Country |
| Barbara | Barbara | Nils Malmros | Denmark, Faroe Islands |
| The Big Lebowski | The Big Lebowski | Joel Coen | United States, United Kingdom |
| The Big Mambo | Das Mambospiel | Michael Gwisdek | Germany |
| The Boxer (opening film) | The Boxer (opening film) | Jim Sheridan | United States, Ireland |
| The Boys | The Boys | Rowan Woods | Australia |
| The Butcher Boy | The Butcher Boy | Neil Jordan | United States, Ireland |
| Central Station | Central do Brasil | Walter Salles | Brazil, France |
| The Commissioner | The Commissioner | George Sluizer | United Kingdom, United States, France, Germany, Belgium |
| Country of the Deaf | Страна глухих | Valery Todorovsky | Russia, France |
| Girls' Night | Girls' Night | Nick Hurran | United Kingdom |
| Good Will Hunting | Good Will Hunting | Gus Van Sant | United States |
| Hold You Tight | 愈快樂愈墮落 | Stanley Kwan | Hong Kong |
| I Want You | I Want You | Michael Winterbottom | United Kingdom |
| Jackie Brown | Jackie Brown | Quentin Tarantino | United States |
| Left Luggage | Left Luggage | Jeroen Krabbé | United States, Netherlands, Belgium, United Kingdom |
| The Naked Eye | La mirada del otro | Vicente Aranda | Spain |
| The Perfect Guy | Jeanne et le Garçon formidable | Olivier Ducastel, Jacques Martineau | France |
| Sada | 戯作・阿部定の生涯 | Nobuhiko Obayashi | Japan |
| Same Old Song | On connaît la chanson | Alain Resnais | France, United Kingdom, Switzerland |
| The Sound of One Hand Clapping | The Sound of One Hand Clapping | Richard Flanagan | Australia |
| Sweet Degeneration | 放浪 | Lin Cheng-sheng | Taiwan |
| The Best Man | Il testimone dello sposo | Pupi Avati | Italy |
| Too Much (Little) Love | Trop (peu) d'amour | Jacques Doillon | France |
| Wag the Dog | Wag the Dog | Barry Levinson | United States |
| Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl | 天浴 | Joan Chen | Hong Kong, United States, Taiwan |

## Official Awards
### Main Competition

The following prizes were awarded by the Jury:
* Golden Bear: Central Station by Walter Salles
* Silver Bear Special Jury Prize: Wag the Dog by Barry Levinson
* Silver Bear for Best Director: Neil Jordan for The Butcher Boy
* Silver Bear for Best Actress: Fernanda Montenegro for Central Station
* Silver Bear for Best Actor: Samuel L. Jackson for Jackie Brown
* Silver Bear for an Outstanding Single Achievement: Matt Damon for Good Will Hunting
* Silver Bear for an outstanding Artistic Contribution: Alain Resnais for Same Old Song
* Alfred Bauer Prize: Hold You Tight by Stanley Kwan
* Honourable Mention:
** Sławomir Idziak for I Want You
** Isabella Rossellini for Left Luggage
** Eamonn Owens for The Butcher Boy

### Honorary Golden Bear

* Catherine Deneuve

### Berlinale Camera

* Carmelo Romero
* Curt Siodmak

## Independent Awards
### Blue Angel Award

* Left Luggage by Jeroen Krabbé

### FIPRESCI Award

* Sada by Nobuhiko Obayashi