‘Dreams (Sex Love)’ Wins the Berlin Film Festival, While ‘The Blue Trail’ Earns Grand Jury Prize

The 75th anniversary edition of the Berlin Film Festival — and the first under the leadership of its new chief, Tricia Tuttle — drew to a close Saturday night, as the jury awarded the Golden Bear to Dag Johan Haugerud’s “Dreams (Sex Love).”

There’s a special poetry to this film — the portrait of a teenage girl with a passionate imagination who pours her intense feelings toward a teacher into a transformative personal essay — taking the festival’s top prize, since it marks the third installment in the Norwegian writer-director’s “Dream Sex Love” trilogy. The first, “Sex,” premiered a year earlier in the Panorama section of the 2024 Berlin Film Fest, while “Love” debuted in competition at Venice late last summer.

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“The film is called ‘Drømmer’ — it’s Norwegian for ‘dreams’ — and this was beyond my wildest dreams really,” said Haugerud, in accepting the prize from jury president Todd Haynes. “I will just say: Write more and read more. It expands your mind. It’s very good for you.”

The Grand Jury Prize — which is essentially second place — went to Brazilian director Gabriel Mascaro’s “The Blue Trail,” which challenges the way society treats its eldest citizens. Surprisingly optimistic as dystopian films go, the film imagines a future where those older than 75 are rounded up and sent to live in what sounds like a huge concentration camp. Audiences never actually see “the Colony,” however, since Mascaro’s protagonist escapes the convoy and ventures out on a path of her own choosing instead.

The Jury Prize went to another South American film, “The Message,” from Argentine director Iván Fund, while Chinese filmmaker Huo Meng earned the Best Director award for “Living the Land.” Whereas “Dreams (Sex Love)” and “The Blue Trail” were widely beloved by critics and festival goers, those two choices came as more of a surprise.

Rose Byrne won leading performance honors for her tour-de-force role in Mary Bronstein’s “If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You.” In a film that swirls like a tornado around Byrne’s performance, the Australian actor plays an overwhelmed mother juggling her work as a therapist and the demands of raising a special needs child.

Andrew Scott won the supporting performance prize for playing Broadway composer Richard Rodgers in “Blue Moon,” director Richard Linklater’s look at a turning point in Rodgers’ career, when he switched partners from Lorenz Hart (the film’s lead character, played by Ethan Hawke) to Oscar Hammerstein. It’s a tricky role, as Scott’s character tries to protect his old friend’s feelings at the same moment he should be popping the cork on a new chapter to his career. Scott, who could not attend the ceremony, sent a video message, in which he fondly recalled being named one European Film Promotion’s Shooting Stars at the fest five years earlier.

Among the innovations under Tuttle was the addition of the new Perspectives section, which replaced Encounters and focused entirely on new directors’ first features. Latin America did well again in this category, as the Perspectives jury selected Mexican filmmaker Ernesto Martínez Bucio’s “The Devil Smokes (and Saves the Burnt Matches in the Same Box)” as the all-around-strong section’s best debut.

Other notable winners include the documentary award going to Brandon Kramer’s “Holding Liat,” a Darren Aronofsky-produced look at how an Israeli family reacts to their son being taken hostage on Oct. 7, and the Teddy Award (for best queer feature) going not to lesbian love story “Dream (Sex Love)” but an Australian animated film called “Lesbian Space Princess.”

Full list of winners:

COMPETITION

Golden Bear for Best Film: “Dreams (Sex Love)”

Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize: “The Blue Trail”

Silver Bear Jury Prize: “The Message”

Silver Bear for Best Director: Huo Meng, “Living the Land”

Silver Bear for Best Leading Performance: Rose Byrne, “If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You”

Silver Bear for Best Supporting Performance: Andrew Scott, “Blue Moon”

Silver Bear for Best Screenplay: “Kontinental ’25,” Radu Jude

Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution: “La Tour de Glace,” Lucile Hadžihalilović

BERLINALE DOCUMENTARY AWARD

Best Documentary: “Holding Liat,” Brandon Kramer

PERSPECTIVES JURY

GWFF Best First Feature: “The Devil Smokes (and Saves the Burnt Matches in the Same Box),” Ernesto Martínez Bucio

BERLINALE SHORTS

Golden Bear: “Lloyd Wong, Unfinished,” Lesley Loksi Chan

Silver Bear: “Ordinary Life,” Yoriko Mizushiri

Awards previously announced:

PANORAMA AWARDS

Panorama Audience Award: “Sorda,” Eva Libertad
Second Prize: “Lesbian Space Princess,” Emma Hough Hobbs, Leela Varghese
Third Prize: “Home Sweet Home,” Frelle Petersen

Panorama Documentary Audience Award: “Die Möllner Briefe,” Martina Priessner
Second Prize: “Yalla Parkour Sweden,” Areeb Zuaiter
Third Prize: “Khartoum,” Anas Saeed, Rawia Alhag, Ibrahim Snoopy, Timeea M Ahmed, Phil Cox

GENERATION AWARDS

Generation International Jury

Grand Prix for Best Film in Generation 14plus: “Christy,” Brendan Canty
Special Mention: “Têtes Brûlées,” Maja-Ajmia Yde Zellama

Special Prize for Best Short Film in Generation 14plus: “Don’t Wake the Sleeping Child,” Kevin Aubert

A Bird Flew,” Leinad Pájaro De la Hoz
Special Mention: “Beneath Which Rivers Flow,” Ali Yahya

Grand Prix for Best Film in Generation Kplus: “The Botanist,” Jing Yi
Special Mention: “Seaside Serendipity,” Satoko Yokohama

Special Prize for Best Short Film in Generation Kplus: “Autokar,” Sylwia Szkiłądź
Special Mention: “Akababuru: Expression of Astonishment,“ Irati Dojura Landa Yagarí

Youth Jury Generation 14plus

Crystal Bear for Best Film: “Sunshine,” Antoinette Jadaone
Special Mention: ”Playtime,” Lucia Murat

Crystal Bear for Best Short Film: “Wish You Were Ear,” Mirjana Balogh
Special Mention: “Sunset Over America,” Matías Rojas Valencia

Children’s Jury Generation Kplus

Crystal Bear for Best Film: “Maya, Give Me a Title,” Michel Gondry
Special Mention: “Circusboy,” Julia Lemke

Crystal Bear for Best Short Film: “Little Rebels Cinema Club,” Khozy Rizal
Special Mention: “Down in the Dumps,” Vera van Wolferen

INDEPENDENT JURY PRIZES

Ecumenical Jury Prizes
Competition: “The Blue Trail,” Gabriel Mascaro
Panorama: “The Heart Is a Muscle,” Imran Hamdulay
Forum: “Holding Liat,” Brandon Kramer

FIPRESCI Jury Prizes
Competition: “Dreams (Sex Love),” Dag Johan Haugerud
Encounters: “Little Trouble Girls,” Urška Djukić
Panorama: “Under the Flags, the Sun,” Juanjo Pereira
Forum: “The Memory of Butterflies,” Tatiana Fuentes Sadowski

Teddy Awards
Best Feature Film: “Lesbian Space Princess,” Leela Varghese, Emma Hough Hobbs
Best Documentary/Essay Film: “Satanic Sow,” Rosa von Praunheim
Best Short Film: “Lloyd Wong,” Lesley Loksi Chan
Jury Award: “If You Are Afraid You Put Your Heart into Your Mouth and Smile,” Marie Luise Lehner
Special Teddy Award: Todd Haynes

CICAE Art Cinema Award
Panorama: “Deaf” (Sorda), Eva Libertad
Forum: “If You Are Afraid You Put Your Heart Into Your Mouth and Smile,” Marie Luise Lehner

Guild Film Prize: “Dying,” Matthias Glasner

Label Europa Cinemas: “Hysteria by Mehmet,” Mehmet Akif Büyükatalay

Caligari Film Prize: “Fwends,” Sophie Somerville

Peace Film Prize: “Khartoum,” Anas Saeed, Rawia Alhag, Ibrahim Snoopy, Timeea M Ahmed, Phil Cox
Special Mention: “Queer as Punk,” Yihwen Chen

Amnesty International Film Award: “The Moelln Letters,” Martina Priessner
Special Mention: “Khartoum,” Anas Saeed, Rawia Alhag, Ibrahim Snoopy, Timeea M Ahmed, Phil Cox

Heiner Carow Prize: “Palliative Care Unit,” Philipp Döring

AG-Kino Gilde Cinema Vision 14Plus: “Paternal Leave,” Alissa Jung
Special Mention: “Têtes brûlées,” Maja-Ajmia Yde Zellama

OTHER PRIZES

Berliner Morgenpost Readers’ Jury Award: “The Blue Trail,” Gabriel Mascaro

Tagesspiegel Readers’ Jury Award: “The Swan Song of Fedor Ozerov,” Yuri Semashko

DEVELOPMENT AWARDS

Artekino International Award: “Dreamgirl,” Kaan Müjdeci, produced byTato Film & Asteros Film

Eurimages Co-Production Development Award: “Ibicaba – Visions of Paradise,” Andrea Štaka

VFF Talent Highlight Award: “March 14th,” Alberto Gross Molo

Gen Z Audience Award: “30 Days of Summer,” Anastasiia Solonevych

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