A jury is considered independent when its members are not selected by the Berlinale. A number of independent juries award prizes at the Berlinale. The high level of quality and diversity of the films are an invitation for critical examination and discerning judgment that opens up new directions. Accordingly the independent juries award their prizes along different criteria, in accordance to the special intention linked to each award. The following prizes are awarded by independent juries during the Berlinale:

Prizes of the Ecumenical Jury

Since 1992, the international film organisations of the Protestant and Catholic Churches - INTERFILM and SIGNIS - have been represented by the Ecumenical Jury. It consists of six members and awards its main prize to a film entered in the Competition. It also awards two other prizes, both worth 2,500 Euros, one to a film from the Panorama and one to a film in the Forum. The prizes go to directors who have succeeded in portraying actions or human experiences that are in keeping with the Gospels, or in sensitising viewers to spiritual, human or social values. The jury members for the Berlinale 2011: Dietmar Adler, Julienne N. Munyaneza, Prof. Jean-Michel Zucker, Gabriele Carunchio, Peter Sheehan and Lothar Strüber. The prize for a film from the Competition goes to

Jodaeiye Nader az Simin | Nader And Simin, A Separation

by Asghar Farhadi This film dramatizes powerfully conflicts associated with family life and living in Iran. It addresses its subject-matter with equality, respect, and sincerity. Its themes include parent-child relationships, separation, ethical decision-making, justice, and religious commitment. Its power is strengthened by the Director's invitation to the viewer to engage with suggested solutions. It maintains creatively tension throughout, and never loses the integrity of its individual themes. The film communicates different moral viewpoints effectively in a realistic, and culturally sensitive way. Special Mention

The Forgiveness Of Blood

by Joshua Marston This film informs forcibly about a son taking responsibility for his actions in a family caught in a vendetta culture in Albania. The prize for a film from the Panorama goes to

Lo Roim Alaich | Invisible

by Michal Aviad This film deals with women's rape - a major and frequent social problem of physical and mental trauma. It shows with empathy, and brilliant psychological relevance, the complex feelings and behaviour of two victims who meet by chance. They try to overcome the long-lasting sequelae from which they are suffering. Through the generosity, the energy, and the talents of the Director and her two actresses, this first feature film is based on real facts. It shows the successful fight for women's rights and dignity. Special Mention

Barzakh

by Mantas Kvedaravicius This film depicts forcefully the rage and despair about the injustices and the abuse of human rights remaining in Chechnya after the Russian withdrawal. The prize for a film from the Forum goes to

En terrains connus | Familiar Grounds

by Stéphane Lafleur This film is structurally original in showing how "accidents" can alter human relationships. It is innovative in drawing warm and human comic moments out of an alienated world where relationships are fragile. Its dialogue is sparse and well-controlled, and the soundtrack integrates very effectively with the film's visual imagery. Special Mention

De Engel van Doel | An Angel in Doel

by Tom Fassaert This documentary shows sympathetically how urban development and globalization affect individuals in an aged community in Antwerp, Belgium.

Prizes of the FIPRESCI Juries

The juries of the Fédération Internationale de la Presse Cinématographique (FIPRESCI), the international film critics association, view films from the Competition programme and the Panorama and Forum sections. They award a prize for the best film in each of these sections. Jury members 2011: Diego Lerer (President), Ken'ichi Okubo, Joao Antunes, Jurica Pavicic, Ingeborg Bratoeva, Daniela Sannwald, Carmen Gray, Gulnara Abikeyeva, Silvia Hallensleben. The prize for a film from the Competition

A torinói ló | The Turin Horse

by Béla Tarr The prize for a film from the Panorama

Dernier étage gauche gauche | Top Floor Left Wing

by Angelo Cianci The prize for a film from the Forum Heaven's Story by Zeze Takahisa

Prize of the Guild of German Art House Cinemas

The jury of the Guild of German Art House Cinemas is composed of three members who run cinemas and are members of the Guild. The jury awards its prize to a film screened in the Competition. The jury members for the Berlinale 2011: Adrian Kutter, Hans-Werner Renneke and Burkhard Voiges. The members of the Jury award the Prize of the Guild of German Art to Wer wenn nicht wir | If Not Us, Who by Andres Veiel

C.I.C.A.E Prizes

The Confédération Internationale des Cinémas d'Art et d'Essai (C.I.C.A.E.), the International Confederation of Art House Cinemas, forms one jury for the Panorama and one for the Forum. Each jury awards one prize in its section. Jury members 2011: Roy Dib, Ulrich Klinkertz, Ula Sniegowska (Panorama); Holger Lüsch, Davide Borghini, Sonata Zalneraviciute (Forum). The members of the Panorama-Jury award the C.I.C.A.E. Prize to Here by Braden King We found the picture remarkable for its cinematographic qualities and open narration that draws the viewer into a journey-like encounter of two individuals that questions not only their personal backgrounds and identities but also geographical, political and cultural borders. The members of the Forum-Jury award the C.I.C.A.E. Prize to Amnistia | Amnesty by Bujar Alimani The film represents the clash between a younger generation with the traditional patriarchal and oppressive structures in their society. Love raises the desire of change but is confronted with the impossibility to be realised yet. However the film has signs of hope for the future like the solidarity among young people. The original script and editing lets the audience get to know step by step the main characters and their similarities in their daily life. The intense use of close portraits shows subtle changes in the faces of the strong main actors, which makes the viewer follow the story from their emotionally point of view. Supported by well selected photography with unusual colours the film develops an unique atmosphere.

"Label Europa Cinemas"

Launched for the first time in 2003 within the Cannes Film Festival, the Europa Cinemas Label has been created in order to help European films increase their distribution and raise their profile with audiences and media. The Label is since then awarded by a jury of 5 member exhibitors to a European film selected in the Directors' Fortnight section in Cannes and since 2004 in the Venice Days. Since 2005, Europa Cinemas has been cooperating with the Berlinale to award the Label in the Panorama section. The jury at the Berlinale 2011: Gábor Böszörményi, Salvatore Cordaro, Wilko Schuringa and Till Burandt von Kameke. The jury awards Über uns das All | Above Us Only Sky by Jan Schomburg

TEDDY AWARD

The TEDDY AWARD - the most outstanding queer film prize in the world - is a socially engaged, political honour presented to films and people who communicate queer themes on a broad social platform, thereby contributing to tolerance, acceptance, solidarity and equality in society. During the Berlinale the award is presented in the following categories: Best Feature, Best Documentary/Essay Film and Best Short Film as well as the Special TEDDY AWARD which goes to extraordinary personalities. Every year films from all sections of the Berlin International Film Festival compete for the TEDDY AWARDS. The Teddy Jury at the Berlinale 2011: Marcus Hu (jury president), Beth Sá Freire, Jin Park, Kriengsak Silakong, Andrejs Visockis, Istvan Szebesi, Jason Barker, Mara Fortes and Sarah Neal.

Best Feature Film

Ausente | Absent

by Marco Berger

Teddy Jury Award

Tomboy

by Céline Sciamma

Best Documentary Film

The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye

by Marie Losier

Best Short Film

Generations

by Barbara Hammer and Gina Carducci ex aequo

Maya Deren's Sink

by Barbara Hammer

Dialogue en perspective

Since 2004, the prize "Dialogue en perspective", has been awarded to a film entry in the section Perspektive Deutsches Kino. The German-French Youth Office is again the sponsor of the "Dialogue en perspective". The prize is the result of an intercultural dialogue on film between young people from henceforth three different countries: France, Germany and Bosnia. From 2012 on, beside France and Germany an annually changing third country will be invited to participate in the jury announcement. The prize is awarded to the film that equally impresses the young and critical jury members from the three nations. The prize jury is composed of seven members and is headed by a president. The jury members are selected by the prize donators by means of a public call for application. The president of the jury is a professional whose work enriches the cinematographic dialogue between France and Germany. This jury is the only one at the Berlin International Film Festival which is constituted after a public invitation to tender. 2011, the jury will be headed by director and producer Romuald Karmakar. The other jury members: Eléonore Clovis, Yann-Eryl Mer, Christophe Lucchese, Ozan Mermer, Florence Freitag, Andreas Fauser and Hana Stojic. The prize Dialogue en perspective goes to Die Ausbildung | The Education by Dirk Lütter

Caligari Film Prize

A three-person jury awards the Caligari Film Prize to a film in the Forum. The prize is sponsored by the "German Federal Association of Communal Film Work" and "filmdienst" magazine. The winning film is honoured with 4,000 Euros, half of which is given to the director, the other half is meant to fund distribution. The 2011 jury: Julia Teichmann, Jennifer Borrmann and Peter Link.

The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye

by Marie Losier

NETPAC Prize

The Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema (NETPAC) is an alliance of festival organisers and film critics whose aim is to support Asian film. The jury awards a prize to an Asian film screened in the Forum. The jury members 2011: Lorna Tee, Pimpaka Towira, Nora Bierich. The members of the Jury award the NETPAC Prize to Heaven's Story by Zeze Takahisa Special Mention Halaw | Ways of the Sea by Sheron Dayoc

Peace Film Award

The jury is composed of 9 members and views films from every section. The 5,000-Euro prize is donated by the Peace Film Award Initiative in association with the Heinrich Böll Foundation and the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW). The Peace Film Prize Jury can also award Special Mentions. The jury members for the Berlinale 2011: Christoph Heubner, Mehdi Benhadj-Djilali, Monica Ch. Puginier, Marianne Wündrich-Brosien, Maria Francesca Ponzi, Burhan Qurbani and Helgard Gammert-Jakli. The Peace Fim Award goes to Jutro bedzie lepiej | Tomorrow will be better by Dorota Kedzierzawska Three Kings of Hope - Three Russian street kids are on the go: They leave their benches in the train station under which they sleep - hungry, filthy and constantly surrounded by everyday threats. But they hold on to one another. Two brothers and the older one; somewhere in another world there is a glow of hope waiting for them. And they will return: as kings. With haunting and poetical images the Polish film director Dorota Kedzierzawska tells this bitter tale of today's reality. Through the eyes of the children she unmasks the harsh world of the adults and their self-made constraints. And Pedya, the six-year old shines through the world - directly into the heart.

Amnesty International Film Prize

The German branch of Amnesty International has awarded the Amnesty International Film Prize for the first time at the Berlinale 2005. This award has already been presented at other international film festivals. The prize is worth 5,000 Euros. The jury will view films entered into the Competition, Panorama and Forum sections, paying special attention to documentaries. The aim of the prize is to draw the attention of audiences and representatives of the film industry to the theme of human rights and encourage filmmakers to tackle this topic. The jury members at the Berlinale 2011: Juliane Köhler, Monika Lüke and Hans-Christian Schmid. The Jury awards the Amnesty International Film Prize to Barzakh by Mantas Kvedaravicius

CINEMA fairbindet Prize

In 2011, German Federal Minister Dirk Niebel will for the first time present the CINEMA fairbindet award. With this special developmental award, the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development honours a film that addresses a global issue and encourages discussion in an extraordinary way - whether climate change, migration, education or human rights violations. The award is presented to a feature or documentary film in the Competition, Forum, Panorama or Generation sections. "What does this have to do with me?", "What can I do?" - all eight nominated films answer such questions in their own creative way. Sitting on the 2011 jury: Gaston Kaboré, Ernst Szebedits, Ina Paule Klink and Gerda Meuer. The CIINEMA fairbindet Prize goes to Bad o Meh | Wind & Fog by Mohammad Ali Talebi

Femina Film Prize

The prize honours the "outstanding artistic contribution of a female technician" in a feature film from a German-speaking country in the areas of set design, camera work, costumes, music or editing. The aim of the prize is to highlight the contribution of the creative work of women towards the final result of a film. The prize is worth 2,000 Euros and is awarded annually by the Femina Film Prize Association, since 2005 within the scope of the Berlinale. The jury is comprised of three women working in the film industry. The jury members at the Berlinale 2011: Renata Helker, Angela Schanelec and Reinhild Blaschke. The Jury awards the Femina Film Prize to Julia Brandes for the costume in Lollipop Monster by Ziska Riemann (Perspektive Deutsches Kino) Julia Brandes' costumes vary between cheerful showeffect and keen charakter drawing with a great deal of unpredictable fantasy. She manages to visualize the often contradictory attitudes to life of the main characters - two sixteen year old girls - in a highly intensive and credible way.

Readers' Juries and Audience Awards

Panorama Audience Award

All Berlinale visitors can vote for the Panorama Audience Award by filling in a vote sheet. The prize was started in 1999 and is made possible by a joint initiative between the Berlin city magazine "tip", the radio channel "Radioeins" and the Panorama section itself. PanoramaAudienceAward PPP - fiction film También la lluvia | Even The Rain by Icíar Bollaín PanoramaAudienceAward PPP - documentary film Im Himmel, Unter der Erde. Der Jüdische Friedhof Weißensee | In Heaven Underground - The Weissensee Jewish Cemetery by Britta Wauer

The "Berliner Morgenpost" Readers' Jury

The jury is made up of 12 readers of the daily newspaper "Berliner Morgenpost". It is awarded to a feature film in the Competition section. The jury members for the Berlinale 2011: Renate Amann, Gerd Bocher, Anne-Sylvie König, Inga Maubach, Maik Niedermaier, Katayun Pirdawari, Katrin Rettel, Nils Sager, Sabine Seidel, Ulf Spengler, Stéphanie Weber, Gabriele Wischmann. This year's Berliner Morgenpost Readers' Prize goes to

Jodaeiye Nader az Simin | Nader And Simin, A Separation

by Asghar Farhadi

The ELSE Siegessäule Readers' Choice Award

The jury, which is made up of seven readers of the Berlin gay and lesbian magazine "Siegessäule", takes into account all films with gay or lesbian content, regardless of which section they are in. The prize is awarded to a feature film. The 2011 jury: Beate Rathke, Manuel Schubert, Kristin Klostermann, Agnes Pakozdi, Heike Prestin, Andreas Heimann and Patrick Rieger. This year's ELSE Siegessäule Readers' Choice Award goes to Stadt Land Fluss | Harvest by Benjamin Cantu

The "Tagesspiegel" Readers' Jury

Since the Berlinale 2007, the Berlin-based national daily newspaper "Tagesspiegel" has awarded a Readers' Prize. The jury consists of nine members and the prize is given to the best film in the Forum - along with 3.000 Euro. The jury members at the Berlinale 2011: Steffen Glaubitz, Angela Hannawald, Olaf Mamczek, Benedikt Model, Markus Müller, Silvia Oberhack, Slava Platikanova, Dorothy Siegl, Eleonore Wnendt and Carolin Zantner. This year's Tagesspiegel Readers' Prize goes to Nesvatbov | Matchmaking Mayor by Erika Hníková

Prizes of the Berlinale Talent Campus

Berlin Today Award

For the Berlin Today Award, Campus participants must form international teams and develop an idea for a short film which has something to do with Berlin. Three projects are selected and produced in co-operation with the Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg and Boxfish Films. The films are shown at the next year's Berlinale Talent Campus. The jury gives the best of these films the Berlin Today Award.

Kyoko Miyake (Japan)

for her documentary Hackney Lullabies

Score Competition

The Score Competition offers three young composers or sound designers the opportunity to compose new scores for a pre-selected short film and record them with the German Film Orchestra Babelsberg, with final mixing at the Film and Television Academy (HFF) "Konrad Wolf". The scores will premiere during the Berlinale Talent Campus, and the best score will be chosen by a jury and awarded during the Closing Ceremony. The winner will receive a trip to the finest sound studios in Los Angeles, sponsored by Dolby.

Felix Rösch (Germany)