In If Pigeons Turned to Gold, Pepa Lubojacki documents the lives of four family members, first and foremost brother David who is an alcoholic and homeless. Using a highly personal, diary-like collage Lubojacki attempts to lay bare the roots of intergenerational misfortune repeatedly manifested in severe addiction. Text sculptures, long-term observations, synth-infused beats and AI-animated childhood photos merge here into a striking and playful, unsparing yet loving revelation.

The Berlinale Documentary Award is endowed with 40,000 euros in prize money. The prize money is split between the winning film’s director and producer. Winning the award also entitles a film to take part in the competition for the Oscar® for Best Documentary Feature.

In addition, the film also won this year's Caligari Film Award awarded to films from the Berlinale Forum program. The award was established by the German Federal Association of Communal Film Work and is endowed with 4,000 euros with half going to the film’s director and the other half supporting its distribution.