The Deutscher Filmpreis (German Film Awards, colloquially known as the Bundesfilmpreis, the prize statuettes as Lolas) is the highest German movie award. From 1951 to 2004 it was awarded by a commission

Government agency

A government or state agency is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, such as an intelligence agency. There is a notable variety of agency types...

, since 2005 the award has been given by the Deutsche Filmakademie

Deutsche Filmakademie

The Deutsche Filmakademie eV was founded in 2003 in Berlin. It aims to provide native filmmakers a forum for discussion and a way to promote the reputation of German cinema through publications, presentations, discussions and regular promotion of the subject in the schools...

. With a cash prize of three million euro

Euro

The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...

s - the most highly endowed German cultural award - it differs from the Oscar

Academy Awards

An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...

 or the César

César Award

The César Award is the national film award of France, first given out in 1975. The nominations are selected by the members of the Académie des arts et techniques du cinéma....

.

The Deutsche Filmpreis is the most important element of the German government's policy of supporting the film industry. The Federal Commissioner for Cultural and Media Affairs has been responsible for the administration of the prize since 1999. The awards ceremony is traditionally held in Berlin

Berlin

Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...

.

Statue design

Since 1999 the award has been a statuette of a woman known as the Lola, a reference to Marlene Dietrich

Marlene Dietrich

Marlene Dietrich was a German-American actress and singer.Dietrich remained popular throughout her long career by continually re-inventing herself, professionally and characteristically. In the Berlin of the 1920s, she acted on the stage and in silent films...

's role in Der blaue Engel

Der blaue Engel

The Blue Angel is a film directed by Josef von Sternberg in 1930, based on Heinrich Mann's novel Professor Unrat. The film is considered to be the first major German sound film and it brought world fame to actress Marlene Dietrich...

and Rainer Werner Fassbinder

Rainer Werner Fassbinder

Rainer Werner Maria Fassbinder was a German movie director, screenwriter and actor. He is considered one of the most important representatives of the New German Cinema.He maintained a frenetic pace in film-making...

's film Lola.

Mechthild Schmidt, Partner of HouseWorks digital media, New York about her 1999 design: ”I wanted to symbolize motion. Film IS movement. I wanted the statue to express confidence without being stern, strength without being static. It was important to me to give the “Deutschen Filmpreis” its own identity, not trying to borrow what other awards already successfully symbolize. While the Oscar is the strong, firm standing fighter and winner, I wanted the Filmprize statue to symbolize the dynamics of movement, the muse, the inspiration necessary to make a work of art, to become a winner. The movement is carried through to the asymmetrical conical base.
Stylistically, I was looking for a timeless modern design as well as a historical reference to the first golden era of German film, the Art Deco in the 1920s."

Borrowing from the American model, the awards have been made by an academy, the Deutsche Filmakademie, since 2005. The academy replaces a much-criticised jury

Jury

A jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to ascertain the guilt, or lack thereof, in a crime. In Anglophone jurisdictions, the verdict may be guilty,...

 which was constituted according to the principle of political proportionality, and on which politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

s and clergy

Clergy

Clergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. A clergyman, churchman or cleric is a member of the clergy, especially one who is a priest, preacher, pastor, or other religious professional....

men also sat.

Categories

In 2005 the Deutsche Filmpreis was awarded in the following categories.

• Best Feature Film
  German Film Award for Best Feature Film
  The German Film Award for Best Feature Film is the main award given for best German film at the annual Deutscher Filmpreis awards, the German national film awards. It has been held annually since 1951 in varying formats.-1951–1986:...
  
  
• Best Documentary Film
  German Film Award for Best Documentary Film
  The German Film Award for Best Documentary Film is the award given for best German feature documentary film at the annual Deutscher Filmpreis awards, the German national film awards. The category has been introduced in 2000.-List of winning films:...
  
  
• Best Children's Film
• Best Direction
• Best Script
• Best Actress
• Best Actor
• Best Supporting Actress
• Best Supporting Actor
• Best Cinematography
• Best Editing
• Best Costume Design
• Best Production Design
• Best Sound Editing
• Best Score
• Special Award for Outstanding Contributions to German Cinema
• Viewers' Choice: Best German Film of the Year

Note: the article links are to the German language Wikipedia Project.

Changes from 2005

• Until 2004 a single prize was awarded for the technical categories of cinematography
  Cinematography
  Cinematography is the making of lighting and camera choices when recording photographic images for cinema. It is closely related to the art of still photography...
  
  , film editing
  Film editing
  Film editing is part of the creative post-production process of filmmaking. It involves the selection and combining of shots into sequences, and ultimately creating a finished motion picture. It is an art of storytelling...
  
  , production design, art direction and musical score under the rubric "Outstanding Singular Achievement"
• There was an award for Best Foreign Film
• A second Viewers Choice Award was made for Actor or Actress of the Year.

See also

• Bayerischer Filmpreis
  Bayerischer Filmpreis
  The Bavarian Film Awards have been awarded annually since 1979 by the State Government of Bavaria in Germany for “exceptional achievement in German filmmaking.” Along with the German Film Awards, these are the most highly regarded awards for filmmaking achievement in Germany.The Bavarian Film...
  
  
• Berlin International Film Festival
  Berlin International Film Festival
  The Berlin International Film Festival , also called the Berlinale, is one of the world's leading film festivals and most reputable media events. It is held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in West Berlin in 1951, the festival has been celebrated annually in February since 1978...
  
  
• Bogey Awards
  Bogey Awards
  The Bogey Awards is a series of German film awards. The award is based on the number of people seeing a film within a given time frame. The prize is awarded by the industry's trade journal Blickpunkt: Film.*Titanium: Viewed by ten million people....
  
  
• Cinema of Germany
  Cinema of Germany
  Cinema in Germany can be traced back to the late 19th century. German cinema has made major technical and artistic contributions to film.Unlike any other national cinemas, which developed in the context of relatively continuous and stable political systems, Germany witnesses major changes to its...
  
  

External links

• Deutscher Filmpreis at the Internet Movie Database
  Internet Movie Database
  Internet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
  
  deutsche-filmakademie.de Database of recipients 1951 - today Promotion of German Film and Cinema by the German Federal Government film-zeit.de | Nominations and Winners of 2005