Ferzan Özpetek (born 3 February 1959) is a Turkish-Italian film director and screenwriter, residing in Italy.

Biography

Ferzan Özpetek was born in

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

in 1959. In 1976, he decided to move to Italy to study Cinema History at

Sapienza University of Rome The Sapienza University of Rome ( it, Sapienza – Università di Roma), also called simply Sapienza or the University of Rome, and formally the Università degli Studi di Roma "La Sapienza", is a Public university, public research university l ...

. He completed his education attending art history and costume design classes at the Navona Academy. He also attended director classes at the Silvio D'Amico National Academy of Dramatic Art. After receiving stage experience with

Julian Beck Julian Beck (May 31, 1925 – September 14, 1985) was an American actor, stage director, poet, and painter. He is best known for co-founding and directing The Living Theatre, as well as his role as Reverend Henry Kane, the malevolent preacher i ...

Living Theatre The Living Theatre is an American theatre company founded in 1947 and based in New York City. It is the oldest experimental theatre group in the United States. For most of its history it was led by its founders, actress Judith Malina and painter/po ...

, he moved to the cinema landscape, by working as a director assistant to Massimo Troisi,

Maurizio Ponzi Maurizio Ponzi (born 8 May 1939) is an Italian film director, screenwriter and cinema critic. Born in Rome, he wrote cinema reviews in several Italian magazines during the early 1960s. He worked as assistant director in Pier Paolo Pasolini's e ...

Ricky Tognazzi Ricky Tognazzi (born Riccardo Tognazzi; ; 1 May 1955) is an Italian actor and film director. He has appeared in 50 films and television shows since 1963. His film '' The Escort'' was entered into the 1993 Cannes Film Festival. In 1991, he won ...

Sergio Citti Sergio Citti (30 May 1933 – 11 October 2005) was an Italian film director and screenwriter, born in Rome. He often worked with Pier Paolo Pasolini, but also worked for others such as Ettore Scola. His own films include '' We Free Kings'', f ...

and

Francesco Nuti Francesco Nuti (born 17 May 1955) is an Italian actor, film director and screenwriter. Biography Born in Prato, Nuti began his professional career as an actor in the late 1970s, when he formed the cabaret group ''Giancattivi'' together with ...

. His first work was as Troisi's assistant director for ''

Scusate il ritardo ''Scusate il ritardo'' (''Sorry for the delay'') is a 1983 Italian comedy film written, directed and starred by Massimo Troisi. For this film Lina Polito was awarded with a David di Donatello for Best Supporting Actress and Lello Arena was awa ...

'', followed by Ponzi's '' Sono contento'', where he had a small role performing as a “ madonnaro". His directorial debut was with '' Hamam'', an Italian, Spanish and Turkish co-production. The movie, released in May 1997, was presented at the 50th edition of the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...

in the Quinzaine des Realisateurs session. The movie was presented in other international festivals and was sold for distribution in more than 20 countries around the world. In 1999, he directed ''

Harem Suare ''Harem Suare'' is a 1999 Turkish drama film directed by Ferzan Özpetek. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival. Plot The old Safiye is telling a young woman the life that she lived during the early 1 ...

'', set in his native land of Turkey, telling the tormented love story between the sultan's favourite, Safiye, and the eunuch Nadir, with the fall of the Ottoman Empire in the background. The story was written by Özpetek himself in collaboration with Gianni Romoli, who also produced the movie with Tilde Corsi and their R&C Production company. The film was presented in the Un Certain Regard section at the

, as well as at the

London Film Festival The BFI London Film Festival is an annual film festival founded in 1957 and held in the United Kingdom, running for two weeks in October with co-operation from the British Film Institute. It screens more than 300 films, documentaries and shor ...

and at the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a permane ...

. In 2001, Özpetek directed '' The Ignorant Fairies'' (''Le fate ignoranti''), starring

Margherita Buy Margherita Buy (born 15 January 1962) is an Italian actress. She is a seven-time David di Donatello Awards winner and seven-time Nastro d'argento winner. Overview After a long period of studying at the Academy of Dramatic Arts, she made her b ...

and Stefano Accorsi, a sweet and easy to watch drama about

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...

and bonding and friendship of several kinds of outsiders. The movie won numerous awards including three

Globo d'oro The Globo d'oro (internationally known as Italian Golden Globe) is an Italian annual film award. It was established in 1960 and it has as jury the Rome Foreign Press Association. The first awards ceremony took place in 1960 and was won by the film ...

and four

Nastro d'Argento The Nastro d'Argento, also known by its translated name Silver Ribbon, is an Italian film award awarded each year since 1946 by the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists (Italian: ''Sindacato Nazionale Giornalisti Cinematografici Italiani ...

awards. ''

Facing Windows ''Facing Windows'' (Italian: ''La finestra di fronte'') is a 2003 Italian movie directed by Ferzan Özpetek. Plot Giovanna ( Giovanna Mezzogiorno) and her husband Filippo (Filippo Nigro) have settled into life. They both have jobs that make them ...

'' (''La finestra di fronte'') was released in 2003. It starred Giovanna Mezzogiorno,

Raoul Bova Raoul Bova (born 14 August 1971) is an Italian actor. Bova's European film breakthrough was in the 1993 film ''Piccolo grande amore'', and he's played romantic male leads the following years. His American film credits include ''Under the Tusca ...

Filippo Nigro Filippo Nigro (born 3 December 1970) is an Italian actor. Life and career Born in Rome, Nigro studied at the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia under Lina Wertmüller. After a minor role in the 2001 Ferzan Ozpetek's drama film '' The Igno ...

and

Massimo Girotti Massimo Girotti (18 May 1918 – 5 January 2003) was an Italian film actor whose career spanned seven decades. Born in Mogliano, in the province of Macerata, Girotti developed his athletic physique by swimming and playing polo. While studying eng ...

, in what turned out to be his last performance on film. The film won multiple awards including: five David di Donatello, four Ciak d’Oro and three

awards. The film's success in Italy and the rest of Europe, led it to be distributed by

Sony Pictures Classics Sony Pictures Classics Inc. is an American film production and distribution company that is a division of Sony Pictures. It was founded in 1992 by former Orion Classics heads Michael Barker, Tom Bernard and Marcie Bloom. It distributes, produc ...

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. Once again pairing up with producers Gianni Romoli and Tilde Corsi, in 2005, Özpetek directed ''

Cuore Sacro ''Cuore sacro'' (Sacred heart) is a 2005 Italian film which tells the story of an Italian workaholic businesswoman Irene ( Barbora Bobuľová) who experiences the loss of two of her friends by suicide. This loss, combined with her desire to sell ...

'', which received 12 nominations at the David di Donatello awards, where

Barbora Bobuľová Barbora Bobuľová (born 29 April 1974) is an Italian actress. Since 1995, she has lived and worked mainly in Italy. Life and work Born in Martin, Bobuľová trained at the National Drama Academy in Bratislava before moving to Italy in 1995. S ...

won the Best Actress award. The film also won the award for production design. His next film, ''

Saturn in Opposition ''Saturn in Opposition'' ( it, Saturno contro) is a 2007 Italian-Turkish drama film directed by Ferzan Özpetek. The Turkish title is ''Bir ömür yetmez''. It had its United States premiere at Frameline in San Francisco on 20 June 2008. Plot A ...

'', was released in 2007. It featured a very rich cast:

Pierfrancesco Favino Pierfrancesco Favino (; August 24, 1969) is an Italian actor, voice actor and producer. He has appeared in more than fifty European and American movies and television series since the early 1990s, including '' The Prince of Homburg'' (1997), '' T ...

Luca Argentero Luca Argentero (born 12 April 1978) is an Italian actor, model and television personality. He has appeared in more than 18 films since 2006. Biography Born in Turin to Guido and Agata, Argentero grew up in neighboring Moncalieri. After completin ...

Isabella Ferrari Isabella Ferrari (born 31 March 1964), better known by her stage name of Isabella Fogliazza, is an Italian actress of television, theatre and the cinema. She is best known as the protagonist, ''Commissioner Giovanna Scalise'' in the police dram ...

and

Ambra Angiolini Ambra Angiolini (born 22 April 1977, in Rome) is an Italian actress and singer. She made her film debut in Ferzan Özpetek's '' Saturn in Opposition'' (2007) for which she won the David di Donatello for Best Supporting Actress as well as the N ...

, and also

and Stefano Accorsi with whom he worked with earlier, in ''Le fate ignoranti''. The movie won four Ciak d’oro, five

and four

awards. Angiolini, in her acting debut, won the David di Donatello award for the Best Actress in a Supporting Role. That same year, Özpetek served on the jury at the 64th

Venice International Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival he ...

. He also directed commercial ads, including a spot for the AIRL (the Italian association for cancer research) that featured

. In 2008, Özpetek ended his partnership with producers Romoli and Corsi, and started a new one with

Domenico Procacci Domenico Procacci (born 8 February 1960) is an Italian film producer. Life and career Born in Bari, Procacci debuted as a producer in the late 1980s, when he co-founded with Renzo Rossellini and others the production company Vertigo. In 199 ...

and his Fandango company. Also, for the first time, he began work on a movie that was not based on his own original story idea. The film was based on a novel written by Melania Gaia Mazzucco called ''Un giorno perfetto''. The film of the same name starred

and

Valerio Mastandrea Valerio Mastandrea (born 14 February 1972) is an Italian film, stage and television actor. Life and career He was born in Rome. While being a student of philosophy, in the early 1990s Mastandrea enjoyed some success thanks to the semi-regular pa ...

and was presented at the 65th

. It grossed 3 million euro at the box-office. In 2008, the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, dedicated a retrospective on him, screening all of his movies. He has been one of the few Italian directors to be given this honour. In April 2009, he directed a short movie called ''Nonostante tutto è Pasqua'' (Despite Everything it's Easter), a segment of the project'' L’Aquila 2009 - Cinque registi tra le macerie'', in which multiple directors took on subjects regarding the

2009 L'Aquila earthquake The 2009 L'Aquila earthquake occurred in the region of Abruzzo, in central Italy. The main shock occurred at 03:32 CEST (01:32 UTC) on 6 April 2009, and was rated 5.8 or 5.9 on the Richter magnitude scale and 6.3 on the moment magnitude scale; ...

. Özpetek's short was dedicated to Alessandra Cora, an aspiring singer who died in her house's rubble. His next film '' Loose Cannons'' was released in 2010. It was co-written with

Ivan Cotroneo Ivan Cotroneo (born 21 February 1968) is an Italian writer, scriptwriter and director, known for '' I Am Love'', ''Kryptonite!'' and '' Loose Cannons''. Biography After abandoning his law studies he moved to Rome, where he graduated in scriptwri ...

and stars

Riccardo Scamarcio Riccardo Dario Scamarcio (; born 13 November 1979) is an Italian actor and film producer. Life and career Scamarcio was born in Trani, Apulia, the son of Irene Petrafesa, a painter, and Emilio Scamarcio. He went to train as an actor at the Sc ...

Alessandro Preziosi Alessandro Preziosi (born 19 April 1973) is an Italian actor. Biography Son of lawyers, Preziosi was born and raised in Avellino, Italy, later moving to nearby Vomero, Naples. He completed his classical studies at the Liceo Umberto I of Naples ...

Nicole Grimaudo Nicole Grimaudo (born 22 April 1980, in Caltagirone, Sicily, Italy) is an Italian actress.Ennio Fantastichini Ennio Fantastichini (20 February 1955 – 1 December 2018) was an Italian actor. Life and career Born in Gallese, province of Viterbo, Fantastichini studied acting at the Accademia Nazionale di Arte Drammatica Silvio D'Amico. His breakout role ...

. It is a comedy concerning the family issues of a household in

Lecce Lecce ( ); el, label=Griko, Luppìu, script=Latn; la, Lupiae; grc, Λουπίαι, translit=Loupíai), group=pron is a historic city of 95,766 inhabitants (2015) in southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Lecce, the province ...

. This is one of the few movies Özpetek has set outside

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, a city very close to his heart. On 22 May 2010 the city of

declared Özpetek honorary citizen. The movie was presented out of competition at the 70th edition of the

Berlinale The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...

as well as at the

Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by TriBeCa Productions, Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive progra ...

2010, getting a special recognition of the jury. In 2011, he was asked to direct

Giuseppe Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...

's "

La traviata ''La traviata'' (; ''The Fallen Woman'') is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on ''La Dame aux camélias'' (1852), a play by Alexandre Dumas ''fils'' adapted from his own 18 ...

" at San Carlo Opera House, and performed in December 2012, starring

Carmen Giannattasio Carmen Giannattasio (born 24 April 1975 in Avellino) is an Italian operatic soprano. She studied at the Conservatoire Domenico Cimarosa of Avellino and simultaneously at the University of Salerno (degree in Russian and English Literatures). From ...

and Saimir Pirgu. It filmed for TV by Unitel Classica, and Pal DVD release in Italian company CG Entertainment (2015).

Filmography

Producer

*''Cebimdeki Yabancı'' (2018)

Assistant director

*''Il tenente dei carabinieri'' (1986) *''Il maestro del terrore'' (''The Prince of Terror''- 1988, TV) *''La Scorta'' (''The Bodyguards'', 1993) * ''Anche i commercialisti hanno un'anima'' (1994) * ''Il Branco'' (1994)

Novels

Rosso Istanbul ''Red Istanbul'' ( tr, İstanbul Kırmızısı, it, Rosso Istanbul) is a 2017 film directed by Ferzan Özpetek, based on the novel written by Özpetek, published in 2013. The film was shot in Turkish language with a cast composed entirely of Tur ...

(2013) -

Mondadori Arnoldo Mondadori Editore () is the biggest publishing company in Italy. History The company was founded in 1907 in Ostiglia by 18-year-old Arnoldo Mondadori who began his publishing career with the publication of the magazine ''Luce!''. In 1 ...

- * Sei la mia vita (2015) -

Awards

Only awards won for best direction or best film are included. * ''Facing Windows'': ** David di Donatello Award *** Best film ** Scholars Jury Award *** Best Direction ** Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists *** Best Original Story (together with Gianni Romoli) ** Karlovy Vary International Film Festival *** Best Direction *** Crystal Globe for Ferzan Özpetek ** Bangkok International Film Festival *** Best Film ** Foyle Film Festival *** Best Feature ** Rehoboth Beach Independent Film Festival, Audience Award *** Best Feature ** Seattle International Film Festival *** Best film * ''Hamam'' (''Il bagno turco'') ** Golden Orange (Antalya International Film Festival) *** Best film *** Best direction ** Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists Silver Ribbon award *** Best Producer * ''The Ignorant Fairies'' (''Le fate ignoranti'') ** Austin Gay & Lesbian International Film Festival *** Best Feature ** New York Lesbian and Gay Film Festival *** Best Feature * 2008. Italian Medal of Merit.

References

Other sources

* Biyografi.net
''Biography of Ferzan Özpetek''
* Biyografi.info - ''Biographies''
''Ferzan Özpetek''

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Özpetek, Ferzan 1959 births Best Director Golden Orange Award winners David di Donatello winners Italian film directors Italian male screenwriters Turkish emigrants to Italy LGBT film directors LGBT writers from Italy LGBT writers from Turkey Living people Film people from Istanbul Turkish film directors Turkish male screenwriters Accademia Nazionale di Arte Drammatica Silvio D'Amico alumni LGBT screenwriters