Asghar Farhadi wins first Golden Bear at the 61st Berlinale

The accomplished Iranian screenwriter and film director Asghar Farhadi’s captivating drama Nader and Simin: A Separation won the Golden Bear for the Best Film at the 61st Berlin Film Festival and was elated to receive his coveted prize at the closing ceremony on Saturday February 19, 2011. This must really be fulfilling for him after winning the Silver Bear for Best Director for his film About Elly in 2009. This is the first time an Iranian film has won the Golden Bear. The male and female actors of "Nader and Simin, A Separation" were honored each with a Silver Bear for their performance.


Asghar Farhadi lifting up his Golden Bear at the 61st Berlinale.


The film is about a middle-class couple Nader and Simin married for fifteen years and live with their eleven-year-old daughter Termeh in Tehran. The family belong to the urban upper middle-class and the couple are on the verge of separation. Simin wants to leave the country with her husband and daughter, as she does not want Termeh to grow up under the prevailing conditions. Her desire is not shared by the stubborn Nader. He has concerns for his father, who lives with the family and suffers from Alzheimer's disease. When Nader decides to stay in Iran, Simin files for a divorce.




Bela Tarr took home the Jury Grand Prix of the Silver Bear for being the runner-up for his film "The Turin Horse".

The other winners emerged in the following order:


Silver Bear - Best Director
Ulrich Köhler
for Schlafkrankheit (Sleeping Sickness)


Silver Bear - Best Actress
to the actress-ensemble in
Jodaeiye Nader az Simin (Nader And Simin, A Separation)
by Asghar Farhadi

Silver Bear - Best Actor
to the actor-ensemble in
Jodaeiye Nader az Simin (Nader And Simin, A Separation)
by Asghar Farhadi

Silver Bear - Outstanding Artistic Achievement
Wojciech Staron for the camera in
El premio (The Prize)
by Paula Markovitch

ex aequo

Barbara Enriquez for the production design in
El premio (The Prize)
by Paula Markovitch

Silver Bear - Best Script
Joshua Marston and Andamion Murataj for
The Forgiveness Of Blood (The Forgiveness Of Blood)
by Joshua Marston

Alfred Bauer Prize
Awarded in memory of the Festival founder, for a work of particular innovation.

Wer wenn nicht wir (If Not Us, Who)
by Andres Veiel

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