İlker Çatak (born in 1984 in Berlin) is a German film director and screenwriter. He won the Foreign Film Gold Medal at the 2015

Student Academy Awards The Student Academy Awards are presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in an annual competition for college and university filmmakers. Description The awards were originally named the Student Film Awards and were first ...

with his graduation film ''Fidelity'' (Original: ''Sadakat''). His filmography includes works such as ''Once Upon a Time... Indianerland'' (German: ''Es war einmal Indianerland'', 2017), ''

I Was, I Am, I Will Be ''I Was, I Am, I Will Be'' (german: Es gilt das gesprochene Wort) is a 2019 German drama film directed by İlker Çatak. Plot Poor Kurdish male prostitute Baran wants to start a new life in Germany with the help from pilot Marion. Cast * Anne ...

'' (German: ''Es gilt das gesprochene Wort'', 2019), and ''

The Teachers' Lounge ''The Teachers' Lounge'' (german: Das Lehrerzimmer) is a 2023 German drama film directed by İlker Çatak, who co-wrote the screenplay with . Leonie Benesch stars as a teacher tasked with finding out which of her students is responsible for a se ...

'' (German: Das Lehrerzimmer, 2023) which received numerous awards, including an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

nomination for Best International Feature Film at the

96th Academy Awards The 96th Academy Awards is an upcoming ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), which will honor the best 2023 in film, films of 2023, and is expected to take place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Ange ...

Career

İlker Çatak was born in Berlin in 1984 to Turkish immigrants. At the age of twelve, he moved to Istanbul and graduated there from the embassy school. He then returned to Germany and worked for German and international cinema productions. From 2005, he directed short films and commercials. In 2009, he graduated with a bachelor's degree in Film and Television Directing at the Dekra Medienhochschule Berlin. His short film ''When Namibia was a city...'' (Original: ''Namibya şehir iken...'', co-directed by Johannes Duncker) premiered at the

Hof International Film Festival The Hof International Filmfestival is a German film festival that takes place in Hof, Bavaria, every year in October. Apart from numerous foreign productions, the main focus traditionally is on German films. During six festival days, about 130 f ...

in 2010. From 2012-2014, he studied Directing at the Hamburg Media School. The short film ''Where we are'' (German: ''Wo wir sind'') was selected for the talent showcase Next Generation Short Tiger and a finalist for the 2014

. His graduation short ''Fidelity'' (Original: ''Sadakat'') won the Foreign Film Gold Medal at the 2015

. Both films won the Best Short Film Award at the Filmfestival Max-Ophüls-Prize Saarbrücken in 2014 and 2015, among other awards. Çatak's feature directorial debut ''Once upon a time... Indianerland'' (German: ''Es war einmal Indianerland'') was released in German cinemas in 2017. His next feature film ''

'' (German: ''Es gilt das gesprochene Wort'', 2019) won the

German Film Award The German Film Award (), also known as Lola after its prize statuette, is the national film award of Germany. It is presented at an annual ceremony honouring cinematic achievements in the German film industry. Besides being the most important ...

(Bronze) in 2020 and was nominated for Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor. ''Stambul Garden'' (German: ''Räuberhände'', 2021) won the

Bavarian Film Award The Bavarian Film Awards (german: Bayerischer Filmpreis) have been awarded annually since 1979 by the states of Germany, state government of Bavaria in Germany for “exceptional achievement in German filmmaking.” Along with the Deutscher Filmp ...

for Best Young Actor in 2022. In February 2023, his feature ''

'' (German: ''Das Lehrerzimmer'') premiered at the

73rd Berlin International Film Festival The 73rd annual Berlin International Film Festival, usually called the Berlinale (), took place from 16 to 26 February 2023. It was the first completely in-person Berlinale since the 70th in 2020. The festival has added a new award for best te ...

. The film won five

s including

Best Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

(Gold),

Best Director Best Director is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards. It may refer to: Film awards * AACTA Award for Best Direction * Academy Award for Best Director * BA ...

, Best Screenplay, Best Actress and Best Editing. Çatak was also nominated for the

European Film Award for Best Screenwriter The European Film Award for Best Screenwriter is an award given out at the annual European Film Awards to recognize a screenwriter who has delivered an outstanding screenplay in a film industry. The award is presented by the European Film Academy ( ...

for the film. The film screened at numerous international film festivals and was released theatrically in many countries. In 2024, ''The Teachers' Lounge'' was nominated for the

Academy Award for Best International Feature Film The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...

. In June 2024, Çatak was invited to become a member of the

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization with the stated goal of advancing the arts and sciences of motio ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Çatak, İlker 1984 births Living people German film directors German people of Turkish descent