Chinese director Diao Yinan’s ‘Black Coal, Thin Ice’ wins Berlin film festival’s Golden Bear

BERLIN – Director Diao Yinan’s “Black Coal, Thin Ice,” a detective thriller set in northern China, won the Berlin International Film Festival’s main Golden Bear prize on Saturday.

The movie also picked up the best actor award, which went to Liao Fan for his role as a former policeman turned detective investigating a mysterious series of killings in a gritty industrial region.

“It’s really hard to believe that this dream has come true — a dream that I’ve had for such a long time and that didn’t come true for such a long time,” Diao said as he accepted the Golden Bear statuette. “It’s wonderful.”

Wes Anderson’s “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” a caper set in a fictional spa town in pre-World War II Europe with a strong ensemble cast including Ralph Fiennes, Bill Murray and Edward Norton, won the jury grand prize, which comes with a runner-up Silver Bear.

American filmmaker Richard Linklater took the best director honour for “Boyhood,” made over 12 years, which follows a boy and his family from first grade to college.

Japan’s Haru Kuroki was named best actress for her part in “The Little House,” from veteran director Yoji Yamada, a film about a covert love affair in Japan set against the backdrop of World War II.

Diao’s winning entry was one of three Chinese films in the 20-movie competition this year. Another Chinese entry, director Lou Ye’s “Blind Massage” — an adaptation of a popular novel that’s set largely in a massage centre run by the blind — won the festival’s outstanding artistic contribution prize for its cinematography.