European Film Awards

With awards season in full swing in the US, it is worth noting that the European film community had its big celebration this past weekend with the European Film Awards in Berlin, Germany. Some of the winners are Oscar also-rans, but a few may turn up in this year’s awards season across the pond as well. MELANCHOLIA, the controversial new film from Lars von Trier, was the big winner for the evening, snagging Best European Film, Best Cinematography and Best Production Design. Winning the Best Director prize however was fellow Danish director Susanne Bier for IN A BETTER WORLD, which won the Oscar this past year as Best Foreign Language Film. Actress Tilda Swinton, who is very likely to get her first Best Actress Oscar nomination this year, won the Best European Actress prize for her performance as the mother of a teenage boy who goes on a school rampage in Lynn Ramsey’s shattering WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN.  Colin Firth, who won the Oscar and every other acting prize this year, added yet another, winning Best European Actor honors for THE KING’S SPEECH. Winners of the Best Screenplay prize were the Belgian duo Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne for THE KID WITH THE BIKE, which is also touted as a possible Oscar nominee this year.  Belgium also figured in the European Discovery Award for debut feature with OXYGEN, directed by Hans Von Nuffel. Receiving career tributes were Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen, British director Stephen Frears and French actor Michel Piccoli. The full winners list is presented below.

EUROPEAN FILM AWARDS 2011:

• EUROPEAN FILM 2011: MELANCHOLIA (Lars von Trier, Denmark/Sweden/France/Germany)
• EUROPEAN DIRECTOR 2011: Susanne Bier for HÆVNEN (In a Better World)
• EUROPEAN ACTRESS 2011: Tilda Swinton in WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN
• EUROPEAN ACTOR 2011: Colin Firth in THE KING’S SPEECH
• EUROPEAN SCREENWRITER 2011: Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne for LE GAMIN AU VELO (The Kid with a Bike)
• CARLO DI PALMA EUROPEAN CINEMATOGRAPHER AWARD 2011: Manuel Alberto Claro for MELANCHOLIA
• EUROPEAN EDITOR 2011: Tariq Anwar for THE KING’S SPEECH
• EUROPEAN PRODUCTION DESIGNER 2011: Jette Lehmann for MELANCHOLIA
• EUROPEAN COMPOSER 2011: Ludovic Bource for THE ARTIST
• EUROPEAN DISCOVERY 2011: ADEM (Oxygen) by Hans Van Nuffel, Belgium/theNetherlands
• EUROPEAN FILM ACADEMY DOCUMENTARY 2011 – Pix ARTE: PINA (Wim Wenders, Germany)
• EUROPEAN FILM ACADEMY ANIMATED FEATURE FILM 2011: CHICO & RITA by Tono Errando, Javier Mariscal & Fernando Trueba
• EUROPEAN FILM ACADEMY SHORT FILM 2011: THE WHOLLY FAMILY (Terry Gilliam, Italy)
• EUROPEAN CO-PRODUCTION AWARD 2011 – Prix EURIMAGES: Mariela Besuievsky, Spain
• EUROPEAN ACHIEVEMENT IN WORLD CINEMA 2011: Mads Mikkelsen, Denmark
• EUROPEAN FILM ACADEMY LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD: Stephen Frears, UK
• EUROPEAN FILM ACADEMY SPECIAL HONORARY AWARD: Michel Piccoli, France
• THE PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD 2011: THE KING’S SPEECH (Tom Hooper, UK)

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