The Irish-UK co-production Everybody Digs Bill Evans, a biopic of the influential jazz pianist, received the Silver Bear for Best Director at the 76th Berlin International Film Festival on Saturday, February 21, 2026. Director Grant Gee accepted the award, his feature film debut, at a gala event while much of the cast and crew were simultaneously screening the film at the Dublin International Film Festival.
The film, largely shot in black-and-white, focuses on a difficult period in Evans’ life, following his struggles after the loss of his bassist and musical partner. According to Gee, the production was unexpectedly smooth, aided by a talented cast and crew and even favorable weather conditions during filming in West Cork, Ireland, which stood in for locations in Recent York and Florida.
The screenplay was penned by Irish screenwriter Mark O’Halloran, based on the book Intermission by Owen Martell. The film stars Anders Danielsen Lie as Bill Evans. Everybody Digs Bill Evans is produced by Alan Maher for Cowtown Pictures, Janine Marmot for Hot Property Films and supported by Screen Ireland, the UK Global Screen Fund, Over The Fence Films, Finite Films, Shoni Productions, and OnSight. Mister Smith Entertainment is handling worldwide sales, with CAA co-repping US rights, and Break Out Pictures has acquired distribution rights for the UK and Ireland.
The Berlinale also saw awards for Ilker Çatak’s Yellow Letters, which won the Golden Bear, and Sandra Hüller, who received the Silver Bear for Best Leading Performance for her role in Rose. Lance Hammer’s Queen at Sea earned the Silver Bear Jury Prize, with Anna Calder-Marshall and Tom Courtenay taking home the Silver Bear for Best Supporting Performance.
Other cinematographers recognized at the festival included Warwick Thornton for his film Wolfram, Maayane Bouhnik for Where To?, and Adolpho Veloso for Queen at Sea. Piers McGrail, ISC, served as cinematographer on Everybody Digs Bill Evans, utilizing a visual approach that employed color to differentiate between periods of struggle and recovery in Evans’ life. McGrail noted the challenge of recreating New York and Florida landscapes in rural Ireland.
Gerald Kerkletz, the cinematographer for Rose, described a unique lighting approach utilizing LED prototype candles to mimic the gaze of candlelight in interior scenes. Thornton, who also directed Wolfram, emphasized a “brutalist” aesthetic, shooting with natural light and embracing imperfections in the image. Bouhnik’s Where To? utilized an Arri Alexa 35 camera and was partially filmed on an LED stage to simulate the interior of a car. Veloso’s work on Queen at Sea focused on distinct camera behaviors to represent different generations within the film.
Charlie Sarroff, cinematographer for Saccharine, described his visual approach as “candy and grime,” utilizing vibrant colors against drab backgrounds to convey themes of eating disorders and body image issues.
