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The Berlin International Film Festival's coveted Golden and Silver Bear awards were presented Saturday in a ceremony in Berlin. The top prize, the Golden Bear for Best Film, went to the film "Tuya's Marriage" ("Tu Ya De Hun Shi") by Chinese director Wang Quan'an.
"A very beautiful dream has become reality for me here," director Wang said after receiving the award on Saturday evening.
The winning film deals with a herdswoman in Inner Mongolia forced to look for a new husband who can take care of her and her disabled ex-husband.
The film, which observers felt was something of a surprise choice for the Golden Bear, reflects social changes in modern China. "I think that is is important, particularly in this time when the economy is booming, to ponder and reflect on what we're losing," Wang commented. "Once we've lost (our culture and traditions), we'll never be able to get them back."
The prizes were awarded by a seven-member jury led by the respected American director and screenwriter Paul Schrader. The jury also featured cult American actor Willem Dafoe and the Mexican heartthrob actor Gael García Bernal. Twenty-two films were in competition for the Golden and Silver Bears. Last year's Golden Bear went to the challenging "Grbavica" by the Bosnian director Jasmila Zbanic about the systematic rape of Bosnian women by Serbian soldiers during the 1990s Yugoslav wars.
The Silver Bear for the Jury Grand Prix went to Ariel Rotter's "El Otro" ("The Other"). The film also picked up the Silver Bear for best actor, which went to Julio Chavez for his performance as a businessman who takes on a dead man's identity and discovers a new life.
The prize for best director went to American-born Israeli director Joseph Cedar for his film "Beaufort," which tells the story of Israeli soldiers guarding a military outpost in southern Lebanon before Israel's withdrawal in 2000. "It seems pretty obvious that we're against war," Cedar said. "Hopefully there's something in my film that gives insight into a more specific nature of how absurd combat is."
The best actress award went to the German actress Nina Hoss who starred in Christian Petzold's "Yella," one of only two German films in competition. Hoss plays the movie's eponymous heroine, an East German woman who moves to west Germany to seek a new life but is haunted by her past.
The silver bear for outstanding artistic contribution went to the cast of Robert De Niro's "The Good Shepherd," which deals with the early history of the CIA. It was the only American entry to win a prize: Steven Soderbergh's "The Good German," came away empty-handed, as did Gregory Nava's "Bordertown," which was booed at its premiere this week.
Scottish director David Mackenzie won the best film music award for the use of music in his film "Hallam Foe." The Alfred Bauer Prize, awarded in memory of the festival's founder and given to a particularly innovative film, went to the Korean film "I'm a Cyborg, But That's Ok," ("Sai bo gu ji man gwen chan a") by Park Chan-wook. An honorary Golden Bear also went to American director Arthur Penn, best known for his 1967 film "Bonnie and Clyde," in recognition of his outstanding film career.
The festival also featured several other awards as well as the Golden and Silver Bears. The Peace Film Award went to Bille August's "Goodbye Bafana," which tells the story of the relationship between Nelson Mandela and his warder James Gregory. The Teddy Awards for the best gay-themed films of the festival were given out on Friday night, with the prize for best feature film going to "Ci-Qing" ("Spider Lilies") by Zero Chou.
Sunday is the last day of the 2007 Berlinale, now in its 57th year. The festival's closing day is known as "Cinema Day," when moviegoers can see films at a special reduced price. Around 400 films were shown in the 11-day movie extravaganza, which organizers said had been atttended by around 430,000 movie buffs.
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