VENICE, Italy (AP) — Swedish director Roy Andersson won the Venice Film Festival’s Golden Lion on Saturday for his absurdist drama “A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence.” That counts as a feel-good ending to a contest whose fare often grappled with war, death and depression, both emotional and economic.

The festival’s other avian contender, the widely praised Michael Keaton comeback movie “Birdman,” went home empty-handed, but still looks set to be an awards-season contender.