Berlinale Golden Bear goes to stolen art documentary ‘Dahomey’

The documentary ‘Dahomey’ by French-born director Mati Diop won the Golden Bear at the Berlinale. The jury announced this on Saturday evening in Berlin. The filmmaker with Senegalese roots is concerned with the return of art treasures stolen from Africa.

In “Dahomey” Diop accompanies 26 images on their journey from France to their country of origin, present-day Benin. The experimental documentary film captivates with poetic passages – for example, one of the looted art treasures speaks several times off screen.

German director Matthias Glasner received a Silver Bear for the script of his drama “Die” – the only prize in the competition for Germany.

This year the Grand Jury Prize went to South Korea. The jury awarded the bizarre chamber play “Yeohaengjaui pilyo” (“The Needs of a Traveler”) by South Korean veteran director Hong Sangsoo starring Isabelle Huppert. Romanian-American actor Sebastian Stan received a Silver Bear for best performance in a leading role in the tragicomedy ‘A Different Man’.

The award for best supporting actress went to the British Emily Watson in the Irish-Belgian drama ‘Small Things Like These’. The science fiction parody “L’Empire” won the jury prize. Dominican monk Nelson Carlos De Los Santos Arias won the Silver Bear for best director for the experimental film ‘Pepe’ about a dead hippopotamus in Colombia. Austrian cinematographer Martin Gschlacht was honored with a Silver Bear for an outstanding artistic achievement. He received the prize for his work on the morbid historical drama “Des Teufels Bad”. (sda/dpa)