# 69th Berlin International Film Festival

The 69th annual Berlin International Film Festival took place from 7 to 17 February 2019. French actress Juliette Binoche served as the Jury President.
Lone Scherfig's drama film The Kindness of Strangers opened the festival. The Golden Bear was won by Israeli-French drama Synonyms directed by Nadav Lapid, which also served as the closing film of the festival.

## Juries
### Main competition

* Juliette Binoche, French actress - Jury President
* Justin Chang, American journalist and film critic
* Sandra Hüller, German actress
* Sebastián Lelio, Chilean film director and screenwriter
* Rajendra Roy, American chief curator of MoMA
* Trudie Styler, British actress, producer and film director

### First Feature Award Jury

* Katja Eichinger, German journalist, writer and film producer
* Alain Gomis, French filmmaker
* Vivian Qu, Chinese filmmaker and producer

### Documentary Award Jury

* Maria Bonsanti, Italian artistic director and director of the Eurodoc program
* Gregory Nava, American film director, screenwriter and producer
* Maria Ramos, Brazilian film director

### International Short Film Jury

* Jeffrey Bowers, American curator
* Vanja Kaludjercic, Croatian programmer and purchasing director of MUBI
* Koyo Kouoh, Cameroonian author, curator and artistic director of RAW Material Company

## Official Sections
### Main Competition

The following films were selected for the main competition for the Golden Bear and Silver Bear awards:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| By the Grace of God | Grâce à dieu | François Ozon | France |
| Elisa & Marcela | Elisa y Marcela | Isabel Coixet | Spain |
| Ghost Town Anthology | Répertoire des villes disparues | Denis Côté | Canada |
| God Exists, Her Name Is Petrunija | Господ постои, името ѝ е Петрунија | Teona Strugar Mitevska | Belgium, Croatia, France, Macedonia, Slovenia |
| The Golden Glove | Der Goldene Handschuh | Fatih Akin | France, Germany |
| The Ground Beneath My Feet | Der Boden unter den Füßen | Marie Kreutzer | Austria |
| The Kindness of Strangers (opening film) | The Kindness of Strangers (opening film) | Lone Scherfig | Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States |
| I Was at Home, But | Ich war zuhause, aber | Angela Schanelec | Germany, Serbia |
| Mr Jones | Mr Jones | Agnieszka Holland | Poland, Ukraine, United Kingdom |
| Öndög | Öndög | Wang Quan'an | China |
| Out Stealing Horses | Ut og stjæle hester | Hans Petter Moland | Denmark, Norway, Sweden |
| Piranhas | La paranza dei bambini | Claudio Giovannesi | Italy |
| So Long, My Son | 地久天長 | Wang Xiaoshuai | China |
| Synonyms | Synonymes | Nadav Lapid | France, Germany, Israel |
| System Crasher | Systemsprenger | Nora Fingscheidt | Germany |
| A Tale of Three Sisters | Kız Kardeşler | Emin Alper | Germany, Greece, Netherlands, Turkey |

### Out of competition

The following films were selected to be screened out of competition:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Amazing Grace | Amazing Grace | Alan Elliott | United States |
| Farewell to the Night | L'adieu à la nuit | André Téchiné | France, Germany |
| Marighella | Marighella | Wagner Moura | Brazil |
| The Operative | The Operative | Yuval Adler | France, Germany, Israel, United States |
| Varda by Agnès | Varda par Agnès | Agnès Varda | France |
| Vice | Vice | Adam McKay | United States |

### Panorama

The following films were selected for the Panorama section:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| 37 Seconds | 37秒 | Hikari | Japan |
| Acid | Кислота | Alexander Gorchilin | Russia |
| All My Loving | Geschwister | Edward Berger | Germany |
| The Breath | Der Atem | Uli M Schueppel | Germany |
| Brief Story from the Green Planet | Breve historia del planeta verde | Santiago Loza | Argentina, Brazil, Germany, Spain |
| Buoyancy | Buoyancy | Rodd Rathjen | Australia |
| Chained | עינויים שלי | Yaron Shani | Israel, Germany |
| Dafne | Dafne | Federico Bondi | Italy |
| The Day After I'm Gone [he] | היום שאחרי לאחת | Nimrod Eldar | Israel |
| Divine Love | Divino Amor | Gabriel Mascaro | Brazil, Chile, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Uruguay |
| A Dog Barking at the Moon | 再见南屏晚钟 | Xiang Zi | China, Spain |
| Family Members | Los miembros de la familia | Mateo Bendesky | Argentina |
| Flatland | Flatland | Jenna Bass | South Africa, Germany, Luxembourg |
| Flesh Out | Flesh Out | Michela Occhipinti | Italy |
| Greta* | Greta* | Armando Praça | Brazil |
| Hellhole | Hellhole | Bas Devos | Belgium, Netherlands |
| Holy Beasts | La fiera y la fiesta | Laura Amelia Guzmán and Israel Cárdenas | Dominican Republic, Argentina, Mexico |
| Idol | 우상 | Lee Su-jin | South Korea |
| Jessica Forever | Jessica Forever | Caroline Poggi, Jonathan Vinel | France |
| Light of My Life | Light of My Life | Casey Affleck | United States |
| Mid90s | Mid90s | Jonah Hill | United States |
| Midnight Traveler | Midnight Traveler | Hassan Fazili | Canada, Qatar, United Kingdom, United States |
| The Miracle of the Sargasso Sea* | To thávma tis thálassas ton Sargassón | Syllas Tzoumerkas | Germany, Greece, Netherlands, Sweden |
| Monos | Monos | Alejandro Landes | Argentina, Colombia, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, Uruguay |
| O Beautiful Night | Doch wir lächeln zurück | Xaver Xylophon | Germany |
| The Shadow Play | 风中有朵雨做的云 | Lou Ye | China |
| Skin | Skin | Guy Nattiv | United States |
| The Souvenir | The Souvenir | Joanna Hogg | United Kingdom, United States |
| Staff Only | Staff Only | Neus Ballús | France, Spain |
| Stitches | Šavovi | Miroslav Terzić | Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia |
| Tremors | Temblores | Jayro Bustamante | France, Guatemala, Luxembourg |
| Panorama Dokumente ||||
| Beauty and Decay | Schönheit & Vergänglichkeit | Annekatrin Hendel | Germany |
| A Dog Called Money | A Dog Called Money | Seamus Murphy | Ireland, United Kingdom |
| Lemebel | Lemebel | Joanna Reposi Garibaldi | Chile, Colombia |
| Normal | Normal | Adele Tulli | Italy, Sweden |
| On the Starting Line | La Arrancada | Aldemar Matias | Brazil, Cuba, France |
| Searching Eva | Searching Eva | Pia Hellenthal | Germany |
| Selfie | Selfie | Agostino Ferrente | France, Italy |
| Serendipity | Serendipity | Prune Nourry | United States |
| Shooting the Mafia | Shooting the Mafia | Kim Longinotto | Ireland, United Kingdom |
| System K | Système K | Renaud Barret | France |
| Talking About Trees | Talking About Trees | Suhaib Gasmelbari | Chad, France, Germany, Qatar, Sudan |
| Waiting for the Carnival | Estou Me Guardando Para Quando O Carnaval Chegar | Marcelo Gomes | Brazil |
| Western Arabs | Western Arabs | Omar Shargawi | Denmark, Netherlands |
| What She Said: The Art of Pauline Kael | What She Said: The Art of Pauline Kael | Rob Garver | United States |

### Berlinale Special

The following films were selected for the Berlinale Special section:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Anthropocene: The Human Epoch | Anthropocene: The Human Epoch | Jennifer Baichwal, Nicholas de Pencier and Edward Burtynsky | Canada |
| The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind | The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind | Chiwetel Ejiofor | United Kingdom |
| Brecht | Brecht | Heinrich Breloer | Austria, Germany, Czech Republic |
| The North | El Norte | Gregory Nava | United Kingdom, United States |
| Gully Boy | Gully Boy | Zoya Akhtar | India |
| It Could Have Been Worse – Mario Adorf | Es hätte schlimmer kommen können – Mario Adorf | Dominik Wessely | Germany |
| Kids in the Spotlight | Lampenfieber | Alice Agneskirchner | Germany |
| Peter Lindbergh – Women Stories | Peter Lindbergh – Women Stories | Jean Michel Vecchiet | Germany |
| Photograph | Photograph | Ritesh Batra | Germany, India, United States |
| Watergate | Watergate | Charles Ferguson | United States |
| Who You Think I Am | Celle que vous croyez | Safy Nebbou | France |
| You Only Live Once – Die Toten Hosen on Tour | Weil du nur einmal lebst – Die Toten Hosen auf Tour | Cordula Kablitz-Post | Germany |

### Short Film Competition

The following films were selected for the Berlinale Shorts section:
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| All on a Mardi Gras Day | All on a Mardi Gras Day | Michal Pietrzyk | United States |
| The Station (out of competition) | Al Mahatta | Eltayeb Mahdi | Sudan |
| Blue Boy | Blue Boy | Manuel Abramovich | Argentina/Germany |
| Can't You See Them? - Repeat. | Can't You See Them? - Repeat. | Clarissa Thieme | Germany/Bosnia and Herzegovina |
| Red Rubber Boots (out of competition) | Crvene gumene čizme | Jasmila Žbanić | Bosnia/Herzegovina |
| Entropia | Entropia | Flóra Anna Buda | Hungary |
| Flexible Bodies | Flexible Bodies | Louis Fried | Germany |
| Héctor | Héctor | Victoria Giesen Carvajal | Chile |
| How to Breathe in Kern County | How to Breathe in Kern County | Chris Filippone | United States |
| It has to be lived once and dreamed twice | It has to be lived once and dreamed twice | Rainer Kohlberger | Germany/Austria |
| Kingdom | Kingdom | Tan Wei Keong | Singapore |
| The Golden Legend | Leyenda dorada | Chema García Ibarra, Ion de Sosa | Spain |
| Mr. Mare | Lidérc úr | Luca Tóth | Hungary/France |
| Blessed Land | Mot Khu Dat Tot | Pham Ngoc Lan | Vietnam |
| In Between | Në Mes | Samir Karahoda | Kosovo |
| Omarska | Omarska | Varun Sasindran | France |
| Past Perfect | Past Perfect | Jorge Jácome | Portugal |
| Catching Fire | Prendre feu | Michaël Soyez | France |
| Palace of Colours | Rang Mahal | Prantik Basu | India |
| Rise | Rise | Bárbara Wagner, Benjamin de Burca | Brazil/Canada/USA |
| Shakti | Shakti | Martín Rejtman | Argentina/Chile |
| The Spirit Keepers of Makuta'ay | The Spirit Keepers of Makuta'ay | Yen-Chao Lin | Canada |
| Splash | Splash | Shen Jie | China |
| Watermelon Juice | Suc de síndria | Irene Moray | Spain |
| Umbra | Umbra | Florian Fischer, Johannes Krell | Germany |
| World on Board | Welt an Bord | Eva Könnemann | Germany |

## Official Awards

The following prizes were awarded:

### Main Competition

* Golden Bear: Synonyms by Nadav Lapid
* Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize: By the Grace of God by François Ozon
* Alfred Bauer Prize: System Crasher by Nora Fingscheidt
* Silver Bear for Best Director: Angela Schanelec for I Was at Home, But
* Silver Bear for Best Actress: Yong Mei for So Long, My Son
* Silver Bear for Best Actor: Wang Jingchun for So Long, My Son
* Silver Bear for Best Screenplay: Maurizio Braucci, Claudio Giovannesi and Roberto Saviano for Piranhas
* Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution: Rasmus Videbæk for Out Stealing Horses (Cinematography)

### Golden Bear for Best Short Film

* Umbra by Florian Fischer and Johannes Krell

### Panorama
#### Panorama Audience Award

* 1st Place: 37 Seconds by Hikari
* 2nd Place: Stitches by Miroslav Terzić
* 3rd Place: Buoyancy by Rodd Rathjen

#### Panorama Audience Award – Documentaries

* 1st Place: Talking About Trees by Suhaib Gasmelbari
* 2nd Place: Midnight Traveler by Hassan Fazili and Emelie Mahdavian
* 3rd Place: Shooting the Mafia by Kim Longinotto

### Generation
#### Generation 14Plus

* Crystal Bear for Best Film: Stupid Young Heart by Selma Vilhunen
** Special Mention: We Are Little Zombies by Makoto Nagahisa
* Crystal Bear for Best Short Film: Tattoo by Farhad Delaram
** Special Mention: Four Quartets by Marco Alessi

#### Generation KPlus

* Grand Prix of the Generation 14plus International Jury for the Best Film: House of Hummingbird by Kim Bo-ra
** Special Mention: Bulbul Can Sing by Rima Das
* Special Prize of the Generation 14plus International Jury for the Best Short Film: Liberty by Faren Humes
** Special Mention: The Jarariju Sisters by Jorge Cadena

## Independent Awards
### Teddy Award

* Best Feature Film: Brief Story from the Green Planet by Santiago Loza
* Best Documentary/Essay Film: Lemebel by Joanna Reposi Garibaldi
* Best Short Film: Entropia by Flóra Anna Buda
* Special Jury Award: A Dog Barking at the Moon by Xiang Zi
* Special Teddy Award: Falk Richter
* TEDDY Readers’ Award Powered by QUEER.DE: Brief Story from the Green Planet by Santiago Loza

### FIPRESCI Prize

* Competition: Synonyms by Nadav Lapid
* Panorama: Dafne by Federico Bondi
* Forum: Die Kinder der Toten by Kelly Copper and Pavol Liska

### Prize of the Ecumenical Jury

* Competition: God Exists, Her Name Is Petrunija by Teona Strugar Mitevska
* Panorama: Buoyancy by Rodd Rathjen
** Special Mention: Midnight Traveler by Hassan Fazili and Emelie Mahdavian
* Forum: Earth by Nikolaus Geyrhalter

### CICAE Art Cinema Award

* Panorama: 37 Seconds by HIKARI
* Forum: Our Defeats by Jean-Gabriel Périot

### Berliner Morgenpost Readers' Jury Award

* System Crasher by Nora Fingscheidt

### Tagesspiegel Readers' Jury Award

* Monsters. by Marius Olteanu

### Guild Film Prize

* God Exists, Her Name Is Petrunija by Teona Strugar Mitevska

### Caligari Film Prize

* Heimat Is A Space in Time by Thomas Heise

### Heiner Carow Prize

* Beauty and Decay by Annekatrin Hendel

### Compass-Perspektive-Award

* Born in Evin by Maryam Zaree

### Kompagnon-Fellowship

* Perspektive Deutsches Kino: To Be Continued by Julian Pörksen
* Berlinale Talents: Transit Times by Ana-Felicia Scutelnicu

### ARTEKino International Prize

* A Responsible Adult by Shira Geffen

### Eurimages Co-Production Development Award

* Avalon PC for Alcarràs

### VFF Talent Highlight Award

* Vincenzo Cavallo for Bufis

### Amnesty International Film Award

* Your Turn by Eliza Capai

### Label Europa Cinemas

* Stitches by Miroslav Terzić

### Peace Film Prize

* Your Turn by Eliza Capai
** Special Mention:
*** System K by Renaud Barret
*** Midnight Traveler by Hassan Fazili and Emelie Mahdavian