Cinema Vocabulary
Ein Filmlexikon - Englisch-Deutsch
Film Awards: Oscar - Berlinale - Bambi
German words and expressions related to motion picture awards
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Also see the German Movie Guide for films in German.
Academy Awards Glossary
The terms "Oscar" and "Academy Awards" are registered trademarks of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Germany's The Lives of Others won the Best Foreign
Language Film award at the 2007 ceremonies.
Did you know that Hollywood's very first Academy Award went to a German? In 1929, the first time the Academy Award ceremonies were ever held (on May 16, 1929 in the Blossom Room of the Roosevelt Hotel on Hollywood Boulevard), Emil Jannings (1884-1950) won the "Best Actor" award for his performance in two silent films: The Last Command (1928) and The Way of All Flesh (1927). But Jannings was not at the Roosevelt that evening. He had already been given his statuette (only later known as an Oscar) because he was planning to leave for Germany before the ceremony. (In those days the winners were announced prior to the award night.) Thus, the very first Oscar ever given to anyone went to the German Jannings! His Oscar statuette is on display at the Filmmuseum Berlin in Germany. Jannings was a German citizen born in Rorschach, Switzerland to an American-born father and a German mother.
Web: History of the Academy Awards (Oscar.org)
Web: Emil Jannings (German-Hollywood Connection)
| Academy Awards - Categories in alphabetical order |
|
| English | Deutsch |
| Best Actor* | Bester Darsteller (Hauptrolle) |
| Best Actress* | Beste Darstellerin (Hauptrolle) |
| Best Actor (Supporting)* | Bester Darsteller (Nebenrolle) |
| Best Actress (Supporting)* | Beste Darstellerin (Nebenrolle) |
| Best Adapted Screenplay | Bestes adaptiertes Drehbuch |
| Best Animated Feature | Bester Animationsfilm (Trickfilm) |
| Best Animated Short | Bester kurzer Trickfilm |
| Best Art Direction | Beste Ausstattung |
| Best Cinematography | Beste Kamera |
| Best Costume Design | Beste Kostüme |
| Best Directing* | Beste Regie |
| Best Documentary | Bester Dokumentarfilm |
| Best Documentary Short | Bester kurzer Dokumentarfilm |
| Best Editing | Bester Schnitt |
| Best Foreign Language Film* | Bester fremdsprachiger Film |
| Best Live Action Short Film | Bester kurzer Realfilm |
| Best Makeup | Beste Maske |
| Best Original Score | Beste Filmmusik |
| Best Original Screenplay | Bestes Original-Drehbuch |
| Best Original Song | Bester Filmsong |
| Best Picture* | Bester Film |
| Best Sound Effects | Beste Toneffekte |
| Best Sound Editing | Bester Tonschnitt |
| Best Special Effects* | Beste Spezial-Effekte |
| Honorary Oscar for Lifetime Achievement |
Ehren-Oscar für das Lebenswerk |
| *The full names of the Oscar award categories are: Achievement in... art direction/cinematography/directing/film editing/ makeup/sound editing/visual effects, etc. Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score) Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song) Best motion picture of the year Best foreign language film of the year Germany: The Tin Drum (1979) Germany: Nowhere in Africa (2002) Germany: The Lives of Others (2006) Performance by an actor/actress in a leading role Performance by an actor/actress in a supporting role |
|
| See www.oscars.org for current award winners. | |
Berlinale Glossary
The first Berlinale was held on June 6, 1951 in a Berlin that still had many parts of the city - east and west - in ruins from the war that had ended only six years earlier. Now held in February, the Berlinale has over the years become one of the most important international film festivals (but still behind Cannes or Venice). Instead of a single "Oscar" statuette, the Berlin Film Festival awards its prizes in gold or silver. Die Jury (8 Juroren) gives out gold and silver "Bears" in various film categories, which are similar to those of the American Oscars. But it's a little more complicated in Germany. The top award (for best film) is gold (ein goldener Bär), but der Große Preis der Jury (Grand Prize of the Jury) is a silver bear, not gold. The top acting awards are also silver. In reality, all the Berlinale bears (except for the Glass Bear) are made of bronze with a silver or gold coating.
| die Berlinale The Berlin International Film Festival |
|
| Deutsch | English |
| Goldener Bär | Golden Bear (statuette) |
| Silberner Bär | Silver Bear (statuette) |
| Gläserner Bär | Glass Bear (for best childrens' films) |
| der Leserjury-Preis der Berliner Morgenpost | the Readers' Jury Prize of the Berliner Morgenpost (newspaper), a kind of "people's choice" award for best film |
| The Berlin International Film Festival has many more awards, from the Caligari-Preis to the Shooting-Star. For more about the Berlinale see the www.berlinale.de Web site. | |
“Bambi” - Burda Medienpreis
Germany's oldest media award is known as the BAMBI. Beginning in 1948, the award was a white ceramic deer (das Reh). From 1958 on the "Bambi" has been a gold-plated bronze statuette. A "people's choice" award sponsored by Germany's Hubert Burda Media, the Bambi (officially the Burda Medienpreis) now goes to film, TV, and entertainment performers. Non-Germans also receive Bambis. Past winners include Sandra Bullock, Samuel L. Jackson, Goldie Hawn, and Charlize Theron. See the German-English information below for more:
DEUTSCH: Das goldene Reh ist jedes Jahr eine besondere Auszeichnung für die erfolgreichen und vom Publikum geliebten Stars. Große Stars, glamouröse Roben und bewegende Dankesreden machen jede BAMBI-Gala zu einem unvergesslichen Ereignis.
ENGLISH: Every year the golden deer is a special distinction for successful and popular stars. Big stars, galmorous gowns, and moving thank-you speeches make every BAMBI gala an unforgettable event.
Web: BAMBI - "Deutschlands wichtigster Medienpreis"
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