48th Berlin International Film Festival
The 48th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 11 to 22 February 1998. The festival opened with the Irish film The Boxer by Jim Sheridan. Francis Ford Coppola's The Rainmaker was selected as the closing night film. The Golden Bear was awarded to Brazilian-French film Central Station directed by Walter Salles. The retrospective dedicated to Siodmak Bros., titled Siodmak Bros. Berlin – London – Paris – Hollywood was shown at the festival.
Jury
The following people were announced as being on the jury for the festival:- Ben Kingsley, actor - Jury President
- Senta Berger, actress and producer
- Li Cheuk-to, art director of the Hong Kong International Film Festival
- Leslie Cheung, actor and musician
- Héctor Olivera, director and screenwriter
- Helmut Dietl, director
- Brigitte Roüan, director, actress and screenwriter
- Annette Insdorf, producer
- Maya Turovskaya, historian and film critic
- Maurizio Nichetti, actor, screenwriter, director and producer
- Michael Williams-Jones, president of Miramax Films
Films in competition
| English title | Original title | Director | Country |
| Barbara | Nils Malmros | Denmark, Faroe Islands | |
| The Big Lebowski | The Big Lebowski | Joel Coen | USA, UK |
| The Boxer | The Boxer | Jim Sheridan | USA, Ireland |
| The Boys | The Boys | Rowan Woods | Australia |
| The Butcher Boy | The Butcher Boy | Neil Jordan | USA, Ireland |
| Central Station | Central do Brasil | Walter Salles | Brazil, France |
| The Commissioner | The Commissioner | George Sluizer | UK, USA, France, Germany, Belgium |
| Sweet Degeneration | Fang lang | Lin Cheng-sheng | Taiwan |
| Girls' Night | Girls' Night | Nick Hurran | UK |
| Good Will Hunting | Good Will Hunting | Gus Van Sant | USA |
| I Want You | I Want You | Michael Winterbottom | UK |
| Jackie Brown | Jackie Brown | Quentin Tarantino | USA |
| The Perfect Guy | Jeanne et le Garçon formidable | Olivier Ducastel, Jacques Martineau | France |
| Left Luggage | Jeroen Krabbé | USA, Netherlands, Belgium, UK | |
| The Big Mambo | Das Mambospiel | Michael Gwisdek | Germany |
| The Naked Eye | La mirada del otro | Vicente Aranda | Spain |
| Same Old Song | On connaît la chanson | Alain Resnais | France, UK, Switzerland |
| Sada | Nobuhiko Obayashi | Japan | |
| The Sound of One Hand Clapping | The Sound of One Hand Clapping | Richard Flanagan | Australia |
| Country of the Deaf | Strana glukhikh | Valery Todorovsky | Russia, France |
| The Best Man | Il testimone dello sposo | Pupi Avati | Italy |
| Too Much Love | Trop d'amour | Jacques Doillon | France |
| Wag the Dog | Wag the Dog | Barry Levinson | USA |
| Joan Chen | Hong Kong, USA, Taiwan | ||
| Hold You Tight | Yue kuai le, yue duo luo | Stanley Kwan | Hong Kong |
Key
Awards
The following prizes were awarded by the Jury:- Golden Bear: Central Station by Walter Salles
- Silver Bear – Special Jury Prize: Wag the Dog by Barry Levinson
- Silver Bear for Best Director: Neil Jordan for The Butcher Boy
- Silver Bear for Best Actress: Fernanda Montenegro for Central Station
- Silver Bear for Best Actor: Samuel L. Jackson for Jackie Brown
- Silver Bear for an outstanding single achievement: Matt Damon for Good Will Hunting
- Silver Bear for an outstanding artistic contribution: Alain Resnais for On connaît la chanson
- Alfred Bauer Prize: Yue kuai le, yue duo luo
- Honourable Mention:
- * Sławomir Idziak for I Want You
- * Isabella Rossellini for Left Luggage
- * Eamonn Owens for The Butcher Boy
- Blue Angel Award: Left Luggage by Jeroen Krabbé
- Honorary Golden Bear: Catherine Deneuve
- Berlinale Camera:
- * Carmelo Romero
- * Curt Siodmak
- FIPRESCI Award
- *Sada by Nobuhiko Obayashi