Joachim Trier’s ‘Sentimental Value’ Triumphs at European Film Awards

Joachim Trier’s “Sentimental Value” won best film at the 38th European Film Awards, which took place Saturday in Berlin. The film also won best director, screenwriter, actor, actress and original score.

The lead actress, Renate Reinsve, said the film’s awards campaign had become a “sentimental journey,” although lead actor Stellan Skarsgård downplayed his chances of winning the Oscar, despite his recent Golden Globes win. He said his chances were “slim.”

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The best film nominees included narrative features “It Was Just an Accident,” “Sirāt,” “Sound of Falling” and “The Voice of Hind Rajab,” as well as documentaries “Afternoons of Solitude,” “Fiume O Morte!,” “Riefenstahl,” “Songs of Slow Burning Earth” and “With Hasan in Gaza,” and animated films “Arco,” “Dog of God,” “Little Amelie,” “Olivia and the Invisible Earthquake” and “Tales From the Magic Garden.”

Trier won the award for best director for “Sentimental Value.” The other nominees were Yorgos Lanthimos for “Bugonia,” Oliver Laxe for “Sirāt,” Jafar Panahi for “It Was Just an Accident,” and Mascha Schilinski for “Sound of Falling.”

Trier paid tribute to the power of cinema to unite people. “I think we’re at a core moment when we all have to take into account that the other is not our enemy, and that art can help us, at best, create empathy in the darkness,” he said. “Together with strangers, we can laugh and cry in the cinema. So this is also a plea to keep cinema alive, because it is a place where many of us grew up and learned about being human.”

The screenwriter award went to Eskil Vogt and Trier for “Sentimental Value.” The other contenders were Santiago Fillol and Oliver Laxe for “Sirāt,” Panahi for “It Was Just an Accident,” Schilinski and Louise Peter for “Sound of Falling,” and Paolo Sorrentino for “La Grazia.”

The statuette for best European actress was picked up by Reinsve for “Sentimental Value.” “Somebody give me a slap,” the Norwegian actress said, echoing a line from the film. She added, “This is a movie about a father and daughter relationship, and two sisters, and I want to say to my two sisters, Helen and Cecilia, that I am the older sister but you were the ones taking care of me when we were growing up, and thank you so much, I wouldn’t have been anywhere without you.”

In a post-awards press conference, Trier complimented Reinsve for her ability to “unhinge herself in front of the camera.” He added, “Even though she plans and does a deep character study and does this incredible preparation, you kind of get into sort of uncontrolness in front of the camera when something occurs in you which is quite magical and my job is to try to not get in the way and try to support and stimulate all those possibilities.”

The other best actress nominees were Leonie Benesch for “Late Shift,” Valeria Bruni Tedeschi for “Duse,” Léa Drucker for “Case 137,” and Vicky Krieps for “Love Me Tender.”

The best actor award went to Skarsgård for “Sentimental Value,” who was competing against Sergi López for “Sirāt,” Mads Mikkelsen for “The Last Viking,” Toni Servillo for “La Grazia,” and Idan Weiss for “Franz.”

Asked to comment on Donald Trump’s desire to take over Greenland, Skarsgård said, “It’s pretty absurd, isn’t it? It’s a little man who has megalomania and tries to take over the world.”

The ceremony was opened by Iranian director Jafar Panahi, who spoke about the terrible bloodshed and oppression in his homeland, and the importance of speaking out.

“When the truth is crushed in one place, freedom suffocates everywhere,” he said. “Then no one is safe anywhere in the world. Not in Iran. Not in Europe. Not in America. Not anywhere on this planet. And that is precisely why today our task as filmmakers and artists is harder than ever. If we are disappointed with politicians, we must at least refuse to remain silent. Because silence in a time of crime is not neutrality. Silence is a participation in darkness.”

With that said, he declared the 38th edition of the awards open.

During the ceremony, the European Lifetime Achievement Award was received by Norwegian acting legend Liv Ullmann, who used her speech to make a controversial point about the Nobel Prize. On Thursday, Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who was awarded the prize last year, gifted her peace prize medal to Donald Trump.

“I’m Norwegian,” Ullmann said. “We gave a Nobel Prize to somebody who deserved it, and suddenly that Nobel Prize is going to someone else … It is so strange. And that is why I’m happy, specifically now, because I know that in Norway we have laws that say: If you misuse a Nobel Prize, we take it away from you. So, somebody in the United States may be very disappointed. He will lose it. He just got it.”

Igor Bezinović’s “Fiume O Morte!” won the best documentary prize. The other contenders were Albert Serra’s “Afternoons of Solitude,” Andres Veiel’s “Riefenstahl,” Olha Zhurba’s “Songs of Slow Burning Earth,” and Kamal Aljafari’s “With Hasan in Gaza.”

The animated feature film award was won by “Arco,” whose producers include Natalie Portman. The other nominees were Ugo Bienvenu’s “Arco,” Raitis Ābele and Lauris Ābele’s “Dog of God,” Maïlys Vallade and Liane-Cho Han’s “Little Amelie,” Irene Iborra Rizo’s “Olivia and the Invisible Earthquake,” and David Súkup, Patrik Pašš, Leon Vidmar and Jean-Claude Rozec’s “Tales From the Magic Garden.”

The Discovery Award, given to a director for their first full-length feature film, went to Laura Carreira for “On Falling.” The other nominees were Urška Djukić for “Little Trouble Girls,” Akinola Davies Jr. for “My Father’s Shadow,” Laura Carreira for “On Falling,” Murat Fıratoğlu for “One of Those Days When Hemme Dies,” Mathias Broe for “Sauna,” and Mara Tamkovich for “Under the Grey Sky.”

Greta Scarano’s “Siblings” won the European Young Audience Award. The other nominees were Ugo Bienvenu’s “Arco,” and Nóra Lakos’ “I Accidentally Wrote a Book.”

“Sirāt” dominated the craft categories, with the film’s Mauro Herce winning the cinematographer award, the production designer award going to the film’s Laia Ateca, the sound designer award picked up by “Sirāt’s” Yasmina Praderas, Amanda Villavieja and Laia Casanovas, Cristóbal Fernández winning best editor, and the casting director award going to Nadia Acimi, Luís Bértolo and María Rodrigo.

In other craft categories, Torsten Witte won the make-up and hair award for “Bugonia,” Sabrina Krämer won the costume design award for “Sound of Falling,” and Hania Rani won the award for a composer of an original score for “Sentimental Value.”

At the nominations stage, “Sentimental Value” had led the race with five nominations, while “Sirāt” followed with four, and “Sound of Falling” and “It Was Just an Accident” tied with three each.

During the ceremony, Alice Rohrwacher picked up the European Achievement in World Cinema Award, and the Eurimages International Co-Production Award went to Maren Ade, Jonas Dornbach and Janine Jackowski of Berlin’s Komplizen Film, whose credits include “Sentimental Value.”