"Sentimental Value," a Norwegian-led co-production, emerged as the big winner at the 38th European Film Awards ceremony held in Berlin on Saturday, claiming six major prizes, including Best European Film.
Director Joachim Trier's latest work swept the top categories, with Trier himself winning Best Director and sharing the Best European Screenwriter award with Eskil Vogt. Lead actors Stellan Skarsgård and Renate Reinsve took home the Best Actor and Best Actress awards, respectively. The film also won Best European Composer (Original Score) and Best European Cinematographer for Kasper Tuxen. The production was a collaboration between Norway, France, Denmark, Germany, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
In other categories, French director Ugo Bienvenu's "Arco" won Best Animated Feature, while Laura Carreira's "On Falling," a UK-Portugal co-production, received the European Discovery Prix FIPRESCI. The European Young Audience Award went to "Siblings" (La Vita da Grandi), directed by Italy's Greta Scarano.
"Sirāt" dominated the technical categories, winning Best Production Designer for Laia Ateca, Best Sound Designer for Laia Casanovas, Best Editor for Cristóbal Fernández, and Best Cinematographer for Maura Herce. The film's casting team of Nadia Acimi, Luís Bértolo, and María Rodrigo won Best Casting Director. Additional technical honours included Best Make-up and Hair for Torsten Witte ("Bugonia").
Iranian director Jafar Panahi, nominated for his film "It Was Just an Accident," which won the Palme d'Or at Cannes, opened the ceremony with a powerful speech about the situation in Iran. Introduced by Mark Cousins as "one of the world's greatest filmmakers," he addressed the "unprecedented massacre" and ongoing oppression, bloodshed, and repression by the Iranian government against protesters. “If the world does not respond to this blatant violence today, not only Iran but the entire world is at risk,” said Panahi. “Violence, when left unanswered, becomes normalized. It spreads. It becomes contagious. When the truth is crushed in one place, freedom suffers everywhere. Then no one is safe, anywhere in the world. Not in Iran. Not in Europe. Not in America.”
He urged filmmakers and the audience not to remain silent, emphasising that "silence is a participation in darkness." He received a standing ovation, setting a serious, activist tone for the night—especially poignant given his own risk of returning to prison in Iran.
Norwegian actress Liv Ullmann suggested U.S. President Donald Trump is unlikely to remain in possession of the Nobel Peace Prize gifted to him this past week by Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado. The actress, director, screenwriter, and late Ingmar Bergman muse voiced her surprise at the move at the European Film Awards in Berlin on Saturday, after being presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by Juliette Binoche.
"I'm so proud that I was part of entertainment, of films, specifically now today, when the world is strange and scary and difficult to solve… what is happening now is out of understanding, really," she said. “We have laws in Norway - If you misuse a Nobel prize, we can take it away from you. So, someone in the United States will soon be disappointed.”
The European Film Awards, organised by the European Film Academy, recognise excellence in European cinema across acting, directing, and technical categories. Established in 1988, the ceremony rotates among European capitals to showcase the continent's film industry.
The non-profit Academy comprises thousands of film industry professionals dedicated to promoting European cinema through initiatives including the Month of European Film, which features screenings across the continent.
The 39th edition is scheduled for Saturday, January 16, 2027, at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center in Athens, Greece, marking the first time the awards will be held in Southeastern Europe.
