The awards for the Generation Kplus and Generation 14plus sections of the 73^rd Berlinale, which this year runs from 16-26 February, have just been unveiled.

Starting with Generation 14plus, the members of the Youth Jury Generation 14plus – Leia Haarhuis, Leo Hanstein, Anna Lena Hiemer, Anouk Segebart and Jonas Volkers – awarded the Crystal Bear for Best Film to Sofía Auza’s Adolfo (USA/Mexico). In their statement, the jury members said: “Through an unexpected, yet intense, encounter between strangers and their witty humour, we accompany two fundamentally different people through an enchanting night full of colours, thoughts and poetic-philosophical dialogues. The film won us over thanks to its attention to detail, with which it draws inspiring characters who try to come to terms with their past and, at the same time, look towards the future.”

Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck’s And the King Said, What a Fantastic Machine [+lire aussi :
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interview : Axel Danielson et Maximili…
fiche film] (Sweden/Denmark) was singled out with a Special Mention thanks to “its unique style and humorous as well as creative storytelling about a technology you are all familiar with. […] We particularly liked the use of colourful excerpts from a wide variety of sources which, when put together, still form a unit,” they added.

As for the section’s international jury – made up of Kateryna Gornostai, Fion Mutert and Juanita Onzaga – its Grand Prix for Best Film in the Generation 14plus section, endowed with €7,500, was awarded to Hummingbirds (USA) by Silvia Del Carmen Castaños and Estefanía “Beba” Contreras. “For a touching and subtle glimpse into the intimate moments of memorable characters that grow within their friendship. Their self-determination and playfulness, as both protagonists and authors, are inspiring. Their actions, jokes, songs, laughter and bodies are political and necessary as a form of resistance,” reads the jury statement.

Moving on to the Generation Kplus section, the youth jury, comprising Luan Faik Can, Valerie Louise Da Silva Matos, Timon Mahlke, Nina Marie Stellmacher, Defne Frida Sungu, Enno Winch and Jerrit Wunder, awarded the Crystal Bear for Best Film to Sweet As, directed by Jub Clerc (Australia). The jury labelled it “a film that touched us by virtue of the personal stories of the characters and its impressive backdrops”. A Special Mention was also bestowed upon Domien Huyghe’s Sea Sparkle [+lire aussi :
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interview : Domien & Wendy Huyghe
interview : Thibaud Dooms
fiche film] (Belgium/Netherlands), which the jury described as the story of “a determined and enraged young girl who never gave up hope, which caused us tension as well as sadness,” with “the rough sea and the music [creating] a great atmosphere”.

Next, the Generation Kplus international jury, sponsored by the Children’s Charity of Germany and including Marco Alessi, Venice Atienza and Gudrun Sommer, bestowed its Grand Prix for Best Film, endowed with €7,500, upon Mira Fornay’s She – Hero [+lire aussi :
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Finally, Jenna Hasse’s Longing for the World [+lire aussi :
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The full list of award winners is as follows:

Generation 14plus

Feature films

Crystal Bear
Adolfo – Sofía Auza (USA/Mexico)
Special Mention
And the King Said, What a Fantastic Machine [+lire aussi :
critique
bande-annonce
interview : Axel Danielson et Maximili…
fiche film] – Axel Danielson, Maximilien Van Aertryck (Sweden/Denmark)

Grand Prize of the International Jury
Hummingbirds – Silvia Del Carmen Castaños, Estefanía “Beba” Contreras (USA)
Special Mention
Mutt – Vuk Lungulov-Klotz (USA)

Short films

Crystal Bear for Best Short Film
And Me, I’m Dancing Too – Mohammad Valizadegan (Iran/Germany/Czech Republic)
Special Mention
From the Corner of My Eyes – Domonkos Erhardt (Hungary)

Award of the International Jury for Best Short Film
Infantry – Laís Santos Araújo (Brazil)
Special Mention
Incroci – Francesca de Fusco (Italy)

Generation Kplus

Feature films

Crystal Bear
Sweet As – Jub Clerc (Australia)
Special Mention
Sea Sparkle [+lire aussi :
critique
bande-annonce
interview : Domien & Wendy Huyghe
interview : Thibaud Dooms
fiche film] – Domien Huyghe (Belgium/Netherlands)

Grand Prize of the International Jury
She – Hero [+lire aussi :
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fiche film] – Mira Fornay (Slovakia)
Special Mention
Longing for the World [+lire aussi :
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fiche film] – Jenna Hasse (Switzerland)

Short films

Crystal Bear for Best Short Film
Queenie – Lloyd Lee Choi (USA)
Special Mention
Dede Is Dead – Philippe Kastner (Czech Republic)

Award of the International Jury for Best Short Film
Waking up in Silence – Mila Zhluktenko, Daniel Asadi Faezi (Germany/Ukraine)
Special Mention
Xiaohui and His Cows – Xinying Lao (China)