The prestigious 2025 Berlinale Film Festival celebrated exceptional cinema, awarding its highest honor, the Golden Bear for Best Film, to Norwegian director Dag Johan Haugerud for "Dreams". This film, a queer love story, completes Haugerud's verbally explicit yet visually chaste "Sex, Love, Dreams" trilogy. The drama, described by The Hollywood Reporter as “tender, captivating, and often very funny,” follows a teenage girl recounting her infatuation with her female teacher through a novel she has written.
Renowned actors Rose Byrne and Andrew Scott received top acting accolades at this year's Berlinale. Byrne earned the Silver Bear for Best Leading Performance for her role in Mary Bronstein’s "If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You", where she portrays a therapist on the brink of a nervous breakdown. Meanwhile, Scott was awarded the Silver Bear for Best Supporting Performance for his portrayal of Broadway composer Richard Rogers in Richard Linklater’s "Blue Moon".
The Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize, Berlin's runner-up honor, was awarded to Gabriel Mascaro’s dystopian fantasy "The Blue Trail" from Brazil, featuring Denise Weinberg as a spirited septuagenarian. Huo Meng won the Silver Bear for Best Director for "Living the Land," a novelistic drama about an extended family of poor farmers in China.
The Silver Bear Jury Prize went to director Ivan Fund for "The Message", a black-and-white road movie, while Radu Jude took home the Silver Bear for Best Screenplay for "Kontinental ’25", a caustic morality tale. The ensemble of Lucile Hadzihalilovic’s "The Ice Tower" received the Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution.
Brandon Kramer won the Best Documentary prize for "Holding Liat," a powerful look at an Israeli-American family in crisis. The Best Directorial Debut in Perspectives was awarded to Mexican filmmaker Ernesto Martínez Bucio for "The Devil Smokes (and Saves the Burnt Matches in the Same Box)," a family drama set in 1990s Mexico City.
The 2025 Berlinale Film Festival showcased a diverse array of films and performances, highlighting global narratives and artistic expression. The festival continues to celebrate cinema that challenges, entertains, and inspires audiences worldwide.
