"Dreams (Sex Love)" by Norwegian director Dag Johan Haugerud has won the 2025 Berlin International Film Festival's top award, the Golden Bear.

It tells the story of a student who falls in love with her charismatic teacher, and who eventually reveals her written story to her grandmother and mother. A simple yet deeply authentic meditation on love, it features strong women in the four main roles. The competition's jury praised the "immaculate" performances of its stars, Ella Overbye, Selome Emnetu, Ane Dahl Torp and Anne Marit Jacobsena.

Jury president Todd Haynes ("Carol," "I'm Not There") also noted the film's singular take and universal impact.

Haynes was accompanied by six other jurors to pick the Golden and Silver Bears: Chinese star Fan Bingbing, German filmmaker and actor Maria Schrader, Moroccan-French director Nabil Ayouch, German costume designer Bina Daigeler, Argentine filmmaker Rodrigo Moreno, and US critic and podcast host Amy Nicholson.

The Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize went to "The Blue Trail" by Brazilian filmmaker Gabriel Mascaro, while the Silver Bear Jury Prize recognized Argentine film "The Message." Both works are road trips: Mascaro's film leads through the rich greenery of the Amazon rivers and director Ivan Fund roams along the dusty roads of Argentina's countryside.

Chinese filmmaker Huo Meng won the best director award with his peasant saga, "Living the Land."

Rose Byrne was recognized for her lead performance in "If I Had Legs, I'd Kick You," while Andrew Scott took the Silver Bear for his supporting role in Richard Linklater's "Blue Moon." The Berlinale made its acting awards gender-neutral in 2021.

The Silver Bear for an Outstanding Artistic Contribution went to the entire creative team of "The Ice Tower," starring French actress Marion Cotillard.

Following his 2021 Golden Bear, Romanian Radu Jude won the Silver Bear for Best Screenplay with his low-budget "Kontinental '25."

Not so political

Berlin has traditionally been seen as the most political of all three major European film festivals, along Venice and Cannes, but this time around the works dealing directly with political issues were snubbed by the jury. 

The only documentary of the main competition, "Timestamp," which shows how Ukraine's teachers managed to keep schools running amid the war, left empty-handed.

Another strong candidate with a political backdrop, "Dreams," by Mexican director Michel Franco, didn't obtain any award either. The film portrays the power divide between two lovers, a US philanthropist and a Mexican ballet dancer who almost dies while crossing the border to join her. 

In their acceptance speeches, some filmmakers referred to the difficult situation in the world or in their home countries. It was Radu Jude who offered one of the most outspoken political commentaries of the ceremony, saying he hoped the International Criminal Court in the Hague would do their work to stop those "murderous bastards." The court issued in November 2024 arrest warrants citing alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former defense minister Yoav Gallant and Hamas commander Mohammed Deif. The Hamas leader has since been killed in an Israeli airstrike.

Criticism of Israel's policies during last year's closing gala — in particular by the Israeli and Palestinian directors of the documentary "No Other Land" — led to accusations of antisemitism and calls by German politicians to better manage such potential crises in the future.

This year, an investigation was launched following a speech held at a film premiere, as it included a controversial political slogan that could be interpreted as incitement to hatred.

A film dealing with the fate of an Israeli woman who was abducted by Hamas on October 7, 2023 — "Holding Liat," directed by Brandon Kramer — won two important awards: the Berlinale Documentary Award and one of the prizes of the Ecumenical Jury.

The latest event was the first festival under Tricia Tuttle's leadership, and she mainly avoided political statements throughout the festival, simply inviting everyone to join the next festival in her closing words.

Among the changes introduced by Tuttle is a new competitive section called Perspectives, which features debut feature films. The winning title in this section is "The Devil Smokes (And Saves the Burnt Matches in the Same Box)," by Ernesto Martinez Bucio.