The Circuit

Eran Riklis' "Lemon Tree" has won the 10th Panorama Audience Award at the Berlin film fest. 

The story of a Palestinian widow fighting to save her lemon trees from demolition by her new neighbor, the Israeli minister of defense, won out of 20,000 votes cast.  This year the Panorama presented 52 features, including 19 films from Panorama Dokumente.

Second place was "Darling! The Pieter-Dirk Uys Story" by Julian Shaw, and third was Samson Vicent's "Erika Rabau - Puck of Berlin."

Berlin's extensive list of independent jury awards is a mile long.  It may be shorter to list what didn't win.  Notables are Alex Rivera's "Sleep Dealer" winning the Amnesty International Award.  FIPRESCI Jury prizes went to Fernando Melikian's "Lake Tahoe," Anna Melikian's Sundance entry "Mermaid," and Natalie Assouline's "Shahida - Brides of Allah." 

Full list here.