Berlinale: Comedienne Meltem Kaptan wins acting prize

Created: 02/16/2022, 8:30 p.m

Actress Meltem Kaptan wins the Silver Bear for Best Actress in a Leading Role for the film Rabiye Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush.

© Monika Skolimowska/dpa-Zentralbild/dpa

She plays the mother of the former Guantánamo prisoner Murat Kurnaz: The comedienne Meltem Kaptan wins the most important acting award at the Berlinale.

The Golden Bear for Best Film goes to “Alcarràs”.

Berlin - The drama "Alcarràs" by Spanish director Carla Simón has won the Golden Bear at the Berlinale.

The film tells of the everyday life of a family that runs a peach plantation and finds it difficult to survive.

The jury also honored comedienne Meltem Kaptan on Wednesday evening.

The actress, who lives in Cologne, received the festival's most important acting prize.

She was honored for her leading role in the drama Rabiye Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush.

In it she plays the mother of longtime Guantánamo prisoner Murat Kurnaz.

Director Andreas Dresen tells how his mother tries to free him from the US prison camp.

Author Laila Stieler also won a Silver Bear for the film's screenplay.

French filmmaker Claire Denis received the award for best director.

She was awarded for "Avec amour et acharnement" with Juliette Binoche and Vincent Lindon.

The film portrays a woman whose life is thrown into disarray when an ex-partner resurfaces.

The Grand Jury Prize went to South Korean director Hong Sangsoo's "The Novelist's Film" - about a writer who meets different people.

Director Natalia López Gallardo's drama Robe of Gems won the Jury Prize.

The film follows three women in Mexico who get into trouble with the drug business.

more on the subject

Berlinale appoints additional jury members

Abortion drama "Happening" wins Prix Lumière

Film director Jean-Jacques Beineix died

The Berlinale no longer awards acting prizes according to gender, but for the best acting performance in leading and supporting roles.

The Silver Bear for Best Supporting Performance went to Laura Basuki for the Indonesian story Nana.

The collage "Everything Will Be Ok" by Cambodian Rithy Panh was honored for a special artistic achievement.

Alongside Cannes and Venice, the Berlinale is one of the world's major film festivals.

Despite the pandemic, the film festival will again take place with an audience.

Special rules apply to going to the cinema.

The president of the jury was the US director M. Night Shyamalan ("The Sixth Sense").

The awards were presented earlier than usual because of the pandemic.

The Berlinale will continue until Sunday with several public days.

dpa