Prior to making headlines the next day after a short-lived health scare that required a brief stay in hospital, Ireland’s President Michael D. Higgins arrived at Dublin’s Complex arts center last Wednesday to present the Dublin film festival’s highest honor to Steve McQueen. Introduced in 2007 and named the Volta Award, after the first commercial cinema set up in Dublin in 1909 by writer James Joyce, its previous recipients include Daniel Day Lewis, Claudia Cardinale and Al Pacino. The famously serious director was in high spirits, enthusing that “festivals are about passion, a passion for film.” “There’s always a buzz, isn’t there?” he continued. “[As you] go to the next picture, the next film, you tend to give people tips and say, ‘Oh, you’ve got to see this, you’ve got to see that…’”
McQueen was in and out of the festival, flying home the same night, fueling...
McQueen was in and out of the festival, flying home the same night, fueling...
- 3/4/2024
- by Damon Wise
- Deadline Film + TV
Although one may be tempted to classify The Teacher’s Lounge (Das Lehrerzimmer) as a treatise on the social dynamics within the setting of a high school in Germany, there is far more at work here that is indicative of the Oscar nomination for Best International Feature Film bestowed upon the work this year. It is, in short, one of the best films of the year.
The film begins with math teacher Carla Nowak (Leonie Benesch) calling her class of high school students to order using a series of brief calisthenic-like movements to start the day. Throughout the course of the day, Carla’s dedication to the profession becomes evident. But when a series of thefts is found to be plaguing the school, and one of her students is suspected of the crime, she attempts to investigate the pilfering herself. This leads her to heated confrontations with colleagues, parents, and...
The film begins with math teacher Carla Nowak (Leonie Benesch) calling her class of high school students to order using a series of brief calisthenic-like movements to start the day. Throughout the course of the day, Carla’s dedication to the profession becomes evident. But when a series of thefts is found to be plaguing the school, and one of her students is suspected of the crime, she attempts to investigate the pilfering herself. This leads her to heated confrontations with colleagues, parents, and...
- 2/10/2024
- by Mike Tyrkus
- CinemaNerdz
Leonie Benesch as teacher Carla Nowak, in The Teachers Lounge. Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics
There is something going on in the teachers’ lounge, which goes way beyond school walls, in the thriller-like German drama The Teachers Lounge. With high tensions and a dark comedy undercurrent, The Teachers Lounge is about more than the classroom, as the best of intentions gone horribly wrong. The powerful, jarring drama is also an Oscar nominee for Best International Film.
The story takes place in a middle school, where a series of thefts has the staff on edge but the drama is really a parable about modern society at large. The Teachers also flips the expectations of movies about teachers, where the idealistic teacher breaks through the strictures of the school to triumph and change students’ lives.
In the teachers’ lounge of this nice but ordinary German middle school, the gossip is flying, particularly...
There is something going on in the teachers’ lounge, which goes way beyond school walls, in the thriller-like German drama The Teachers Lounge. With high tensions and a dark comedy undercurrent, The Teachers Lounge is about more than the classroom, as the best of intentions gone horribly wrong. The powerful, jarring drama is also an Oscar nominee for Best International Film.
The story takes place in a middle school, where a series of thefts has the staff on edge but the drama is really a parable about modern society at large. The Teachers also flips the expectations of movies about teachers, where the idealistic teacher breaks through the strictures of the school to triumph and change students’ lives.
In the teachers’ lounge of this nice but ordinary German middle school, the gossip is flying, particularly...
- 2/9/2024
- by Cate Marquis
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Chicago – Public education is in the fight of its life. As curriculums are determined more through the state, parents and politics, the local authority of a child’s educator is being consistently diminished. This subject is the centerpiece of “The Teacher’s Lounge,” co-written and directed by German/Turkish filmmaker Ilker Çatak.
Rating: 4.5/5.0
Carla (Leonie Benesch) is a dedicated, idealistic young teacher in her first job at a German middle school. Her relaxed rapport with her seventh-grade students is put under stress when a series of thefts occur at the school, and a staff investigation leads to accusations and mistrust among outraged parents, opinionated colleagues, and angry students. Caught in the middle of these complex dynamics, Carla tries to mediate … but the more she tries to do everything right, the more desperate her position becomes. The film has a wide release on January 19th, 2024.
’The Teachers’ Lounge,’ Co-Written/Directed by Ilker...
Rating: 4.5/5.0
Carla (Leonie Benesch) is a dedicated, idealistic young teacher in her first job at a German middle school. Her relaxed rapport with her seventh-grade students is put under stress when a series of thefts occur at the school, and a staff investigation leads to accusations and mistrust among outraged parents, opinionated colleagues, and angry students. Caught in the middle of these complex dynamics, Carla tries to mediate … but the more she tries to do everything right, the more desperate her position becomes. The film has a wide release on January 19th, 2024.
’The Teachers’ Lounge,’ Co-Written/Directed by Ilker...
- 1/17/2024
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
llker Çatak, the director of Germany’s Oscar shortlisted The Teachers’ Lounge with Anne-Katrin Titze on Wim Wenders, the director of Japan’s Oscar shortlisted Perfect Days: “Wim is such a nice guy! He’s not my competitor, he’s one of my teachers.”
Luc Dardenne and Jean-Pierre Dardenne’s Young Ahmed (Le Jeune Ahmed), Laurent Cantet’s The Class (Entre Les Murs), Stéphane Brizé’s The Measure Of A Man, starring the unforgettable Vincent Lindon, and Gus Van Sant’s Elephant are four of the films that inspired llker Çatak’s outstanding The Teachers’ Lounge. Shot by Judith Kaufmann, edited by Gesa Jäger (Jakob Lass’s Love Steaks with Lana Cooper and Franz Rogowski; Anna Winger's Transatlantic and Maria Schrader's Unorthodox series with Shira Haas), stars a terrific Leonie Benesch (Michael Haneke’s The White Ribbon).
Ms Nowak (Leonie Benesch) in the classroom with her students...
Luc Dardenne and Jean-Pierre Dardenne’s Young Ahmed (Le Jeune Ahmed), Laurent Cantet’s The Class (Entre Les Murs), Stéphane Brizé’s The Measure Of A Man, starring the unforgettable Vincent Lindon, and Gus Van Sant’s Elephant are four of the films that inspired llker Çatak’s outstanding The Teachers’ Lounge. Shot by Judith Kaufmann, edited by Gesa Jäger (Jakob Lass’s Love Steaks with Lana Cooper and Franz Rogowski; Anna Winger's Transatlantic and Maria Schrader's Unorthodox series with Shira Haas), stars a terrific Leonie Benesch (Michael Haneke’s The White Ribbon).
Ms Nowak (Leonie Benesch) in the classroom with her students...
- 12/31/2023
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
The official German Oscar entry for Best International Feature is an insular, pulse-pounding thriller set within the confines of a school that, for cinematic purposes, doubles as a microcosm of society in general circa 2023 where facts don’t matter, misinformation is rampant, suspicions run hot, divisions run deep, racism still rears its ugly head, and no one can be quite sure where, and even if they want to, fit in.
A critical hit beginning at Berlin, and then winning much talk at Telluride, Toronto and AFI festivals, this fascinating movie is a Blackboard Jungle of a different stripe, but still one that puts a critical finger on our educational institutions by way of the human scope. That it is shot (by cinematographer Judity Kaufmann) in a claustrophobic 4:3 aspect ratio only adds to the tension created by co-writer (with Johannes Duncker) and director Ilker Çatak (a past student Academy Award...
A critical hit beginning at Berlin, and then winning much talk at Telluride, Toronto and AFI festivals, this fascinating movie is a Blackboard Jungle of a different stripe, but still one that puts a critical finger on our educational institutions by way of the human scope. That it is shot (by cinematographer Judity Kaufmann) in a claustrophobic 4:3 aspect ratio only adds to the tension created by co-writer (with Johannes Duncker) and director Ilker Çatak (a past student Academy Award...
- 12/15/2023
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
The 36th European Film Awards took place in Berlin on Saturday, honoring the best cinema to emerge from Europe in 2023. The nominations, which were selected by the European Film Academy, were heavy on arthouse hits that emerged from the Cannes Film Festival including Justine Triet’s “Anatomy of a Fall,” Aki Kaurismäki’s “Fallen Leaves,” and Jonathan Glazer’s “The Zone of Interest.” The results played out similarly to those from Cannes, with Triet’s Palme d’Or-winner taking the top prize of Best European Film.
“Anatomy of a Fall” additionally won the European Director award for Triet, who also shared the European Screenwriter award with Arthur Harari. Sandra Hüller was nominated twice in the European Actress category for her performances in “Anatomy of a Fall” and “The Zone of Interest,” ultimately winning for the former.
The results mirrored those of the 2022 European Film Awards, when “Triangle of Sadness” followed...
“Anatomy of a Fall” additionally won the European Director award for Triet, who also shared the European Screenwriter award with Arthur Harari. Sandra Hüller was nominated twice in the European Actress category for her performances in “Anatomy of a Fall” and “The Zone of Interest,” ultimately winning for the former.
The results mirrored those of the 2022 European Film Awards, when “Triangle of Sadness” followed...
- 12/9/2023
- by Christian Zilko
- Indiewire
French director Justine Triet’s Cannes Palme d’Or winning film Anatomy Of A Fall swept the awards at 36th European Film Awards in Berlin this evening, winning Best European Film, Director, Screenplay (with Arthur Harari) and actress for Sandra Hüller.
There was a strong selection this year with other films and directors leading the nominations including Aki Kaurismäki with Fallen Leaves, Agnieszka Holland with Green Border, Matteo Garrone with Me Captain, Jonathan Glazer with The Zone Of Interest.
The European Films Awards haul for Anatomy Of A Fall will likely ramp up growing Academy Awards buzz around the film and its star Sandra Hüller.
“I can’t say whether it will happen or not but yes… now we are in the race and we will continue the campaign in the U.S. and we’re totally involved, let’s see,” Triet said in an press conference after the ceremony.
There was a strong selection this year with other films and directors leading the nominations including Aki Kaurismäki with Fallen Leaves, Agnieszka Holland with Green Border, Matteo Garrone with Me Captain, Jonathan Glazer with The Zone Of Interest.
The European Films Awards haul for Anatomy Of A Fall will likely ramp up growing Academy Awards buzz around the film and its star Sandra Hüller.
“I can’t say whether it will happen or not but yes… now we are in the race and we will continue the campaign in the U.S. and we’re totally involved, let’s see,” Triet said in an press conference after the ceremony.
- 12/9/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Justine Triet’s courtroom drama “Anatomy of a Fall” triumphed at the 36th European Film Awards, taking statuettes for best film, director, screenwriter and actress at the ceremony, which took place Saturday in Berlin. It had been previously announced that it had won the best editing prize as well.
“Anatomy of a Fall” won the Palme d’Or at Cannes, and recently took the screenplay and international feature awards at the Gothams, but was not selected to represent France in the international feature film category of the Oscars. Despite that setback, Triet said the film would still compete for other categories at the Oscars. “Now we are in the race, of course. We continue down that road,” she said at a press conference following the ceremony in Berlin.
Triet, who co-wrote the screenplay with Arthur Harari, said that they had written it for Sandra Hüller, winner of the best actress award.
“Anatomy of a Fall” won the Palme d’Or at Cannes, and recently took the screenplay and international feature awards at the Gothams, but was not selected to represent France in the international feature film category of the Oscars. Despite that setback, Triet said the film would still compete for other categories at the Oscars. “Now we are in the race, of course. We continue down that road,” she said at a press conference following the ceremony in Berlin.
Triet, who co-wrote the screenplay with Arthur Harari, said that they had written it for Sandra Hüller, winner of the best actress award.
- 12/9/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Ilker Çatak’s The Teachers’ Lounge world premiered to acclaim in the Berlin Film Festival’s Panorama section in February, then swept the board three month later at the German Film Awards, scooping best film, director, screenplay, editing and actress for Leonie Benesch.
The actress plays a rookie teacher whose career and sanity unravels after she becomes embroiled in a heavy-handed investigation into a series of petty thefts at her school.
Çatak, who was born in Berlin to Turkish parents, says the premise for the film was sparked by a school experience he shared with co-writer and lifelong friend Johannes Duncker.
“Three teachers came into the class and frisked us,” Çatak said discussing the film at Deadline’s Contenders Film: International. “We thought it’s a good kick-off for a story where prejudice and assumptions poison a community.”
A crucial decision in the writing process was to confine the action to the school.
The actress plays a rookie teacher whose career and sanity unravels after she becomes embroiled in a heavy-handed investigation into a series of petty thefts at her school.
Çatak, who was born in Berlin to Turkish parents, says the premise for the film was sparked by a school experience he shared with co-writer and lifelong friend Johannes Duncker.
“Three teachers came into the class and frisked us,” Çatak said discussing the film at Deadline’s Contenders Film: International. “We thought it’s a good kick-off for a story where prejudice and assumptions poison a community.”
A crucial decision in the writing process was to confine the action to the school.
- 12/9/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
The ceremony kicks off live from Berlin today (December 9) at 19:30 Cet.
The European Film Awards is taking place in Berlin tonight (December 9), and Screen will be revealing the winners live from the ceremony, kicking off at 19:30 Cet.
German actor Britta Steffenhagen is hosting the awards, which will take place at the Arena Berlin.
Screen will be live-streaming the ceremony below, or you can refresh the page and scroll down to read the winners as they are announced.
Three of the best European film nominees world premiered at Cannes. Justine Triet’s Palme d’Or winner Anatomy Of A Fall...
The European Film Awards is taking place in Berlin tonight (December 9), and Screen will be revealing the winners live from the ceremony, kicking off at 19:30 Cet.
German actor Britta Steffenhagen is hosting the awards, which will take place at the Arena Berlin.
Screen will be live-streaming the ceremony below, or you can refresh the page and scroll down to read the winners as they are announced.
Three of the best European film nominees world premiered at Cannes. Justine Triet’s Palme d’Or winner Anatomy Of A Fall...
- 12/9/2023
- by Mona Tabbara
- ScreenDaily
“None of us expected this,” says director İlker Çatak, whose film “The Teachers’ Lounge” has been selected as Germany’s entry for Best International Feature at the 96th Academy Awards. “We started out making this as a really small film and then all of the sudden you’re representing a whole country. It’s great, but at the same time it’s a great responsibility.”
We talked with Çatak as part of Gold Derby’s special “Meet the Experts” Q&a event with 2023/2024 awards contenders. Watch our exclusive video interview above.
See Watch interviews with other awards contenders
In “The Teachers’ Lounge,” when one of her students is suspected of theft, teacher Carla Nowak (Leonie Benesch) decides to get to the bottom of the matter. Caught between her ideals and the school system, the consequences of her actions threaten to break her.
“I was no easy student,” Çatak jokes while...
We talked with Çatak as part of Gold Derby’s special “Meet the Experts” Q&a event with 2023/2024 awards contenders. Watch our exclusive video interview above.
See Watch interviews with other awards contenders
In “The Teachers’ Lounge,” when one of her students is suspected of theft, teacher Carla Nowak (Leonie Benesch) decides to get to the bottom of the matter. Caught between her ideals and the school system, the consequences of her actions threaten to break her.
“I was no easy student,” Çatak jokes while...
- 12/1/2023
- by Denton Davidson
- Gold Derby
It was easy enough to get made, said German director Ilker Çatak over coffee at the Toronto International Film Festival. He came up with the idea and co-wrote low-budget indie “The Teacher’s Lounge” with his old school-mate Johannes Duncker. “We wanted to make a movie about a young teacher who gets into trouble,” said Çatak. “Education is a topic that everybody has a relationship with. So whether you’ve been in school, or you have kids in school, it’s a universal thing.”
Inspired by a true incident from their school days, the writers set the entire movie inside the school, cutting out the backstory of the idealistic young teacher, Carla (Leonie Benesch). “We eliminated the whole exposition, and jumped right into the action,” said .Çatak. “And another key was to just have it take place in one place. And to restrict ourselves on all kinds of levels: in the screenplay,...
Inspired by a true incident from their school days, the writers set the entire movie inside the school, cutting out the backstory of the idealistic young teacher, Carla (Leonie Benesch). “We eliminated the whole exposition, and jumped right into the action,” said .Çatak. “And another key was to just have it take place in one place. And to restrict ourselves on all kinds of levels: in the screenplay,...
- 11/21/2023
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Five European films dominate the nominations.
The European Film Academy has revealed the nominees for the main categories of the European Film Awards which take place in Berlin on December 9.
The Academy has shortlisted five of the highest profile films to come out of Europe this year for its best European film category, with the directors of the five films also all nominated in the best European director category. The five films also dominate the acting and screenwriting categories.
Three of the best European film nominees world premiered at Cannes. Justine Triet’s Palme d’Or winner Anatomy Of A Fall...
The European Film Academy has revealed the nominees for the main categories of the European Film Awards which take place in Berlin on December 9.
The Academy has shortlisted five of the highest profile films to come out of Europe this year for its best European film category, with the directors of the five films also all nominated in the best European director category. The five films also dominate the acting and screenwriting categories.
Three of the best European film nominees world premiered at Cannes. Justine Triet’s Palme d’Or winner Anatomy Of A Fall...
- 11/7/2023
- by Tim Dams
- ScreenDaily
Finnish filmmaker Aki Kaurismäki’s Fallen Leaves and UK director Jonathan Glazer The Zone Of Interest lead the nominations in the main categories of the 36th European Film Awards which will take place in Berlin on December 9.
The dramas are nominated in all five key categories of Best European Film, Director, Screenwriter as well as Best Actress and Actor. (Click on film titles for Deadline reviews and interviews)
Both films world premiered in Competition at Cannes this year, with The Zone Of Interest winning the Grand Prix and Fallen Leaves clinching the Jury Prize. They are representing the UK and Finland respectively in the Best International Feature Film Oscar race.
French director Justine Triet’s Cannes Palme d’Or winner Anatomy Of A Fall follows with four nominations in all the categories except for best actor, while Poland’s Agnieszka Holland’s Green Border, which won the Venice Special Jury Prize,...
The dramas are nominated in all five key categories of Best European Film, Director, Screenwriter as well as Best Actress and Actor. (Click on film titles for Deadline reviews and interviews)
Both films world premiered in Competition at Cannes this year, with The Zone Of Interest winning the Grand Prix and Fallen Leaves clinching the Jury Prize. They are representing the UK and Finland respectively in the Best International Feature Film Oscar race.
French director Justine Triet’s Cannes Palme d’Or winner Anatomy Of A Fall follows with four nominations in all the categories except for best actor, while Poland’s Agnieszka Holland’s Green Border, which won the Venice Special Jury Prize,...
- 11/7/2023
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Five European films dominate the nominations for this year’s Awards
The European Film Academy has revealed the nominees for the main categories of the European Film Awards which take place in Berlin on November 9.
The Academy has shortlisted five of the highest profile films to come out of European this year for its best European film category, with the directors of the five films also all nominated in the best European director category. The five films also dominate the acting and screenwriting categories.
Three of the best European film nominees world premiered at Cannes. Justine Triet’s Palme d...
The European Film Academy has revealed the nominees for the main categories of the European Film Awards which take place in Berlin on November 9.
The Academy has shortlisted five of the highest profile films to come out of European this year for its best European film category, with the directors of the five films also all nominated in the best European director category. The five films also dominate the acting and screenwriting categories.
Three of the best European film nominees world premiered at Cannes. Justine Triet’s Palme d...
- 11/7/2023
- by Tim Dams
- ScreenDaily
Jonathan Glazer’s harrowing Holocaust drama The Zone of Interest leads the nominations for this year’s European Film Awards (EFAs), picking up five nominations, including for best film and best director, in nominations announced via video on Tuesday.
Zone of Interest, the U.K. official entry for the 2024 Oscars in the best international feature category, also scored Efa nominations for best screenwriter, for Glazer, and best actress and best actor noms for leads Sandra Hüller and Christian Friedel.
Hüller will be competing against herself in the best actress category, having picked up a second Efa nom for her starring role in Justine Triet’s courtroom drama Anatomy of a Fall. The Palme d’Or winner recieved four Efa noms, including for best European Film, best director for Triet and best screenplay for Triet and co-writer Arthur Harari.
Other best European film nominees include Matteo Garrone’s refugee drama Io Capitano from Italy,...
Zone of Interest, the U.K. official entry for the 2024 Oscars in the best international feature category, also scored Efa nominations for best screenwriter, for Glazer, and best actress and best actor noms for leads Sandra Hüller and Christian Friedel.
Hüller will be competing against herself in the best actress category, having picked up a second Efa nom for her starring role in Justine Triet’s courtroom drama Anatomy of a Fall. The Palme d’Or winner recieved four Efa noms, including for best European Film, best director for Triet and best screenplay for Triet and co-writer Arthur Harari.
Other best European film nominees include Matteo Garrone’s refugee drama Io Capitano from Italy,...
- 11/7/2023
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Jonathan Glazer’s “The Zone of Interest” and Aki Kaurismäki’s “Fallen Leaves” led the European Film Awards race after nominations for the major categories were revealed Tuesday.
The films were nominated in all five major categories – European film, director, screenwriter, actor and actress.
Justine Triet’s “Anatomy of a Fall” was close behind with four nominations – film, director, screenwriter and actress.
All three films were prizewinners at Cannes: “The Zone of Interest” took the festival’s Grand Prize, “Fallen Leaves” won the Jury Prize, and “Anatomy of a Fall” was the Palme d’Or winner.
Agnieszka Holland’s “Green Border,” the Special Jury Prize winner at Venice, took three nominations – film, director and screenwriter.
“Me Captain,” Venice’s best director winner, and “The Teachers’ Lounge” each nabbed two nominations.
“Afire,” “Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry,” “How to Have Sex,” “La Chimera” and “The Promised Land” took one nomination each in major categories.
The films were nominated in all five major categories – European film, director, screenwriter, actor and actress.
Justine Triet’s “Anatomy of a Fall” was close behind with four nominations – film, director, screenwriter and actress.
All three films were prizewinners at Cannes: “The Zone of Interest” took the festival’s Grand Prize, “Fallen Leaves” won the Jury Prize, and “Anatomy of a Fall” was the Palme d’Or winner.
Agnieszka Holland’s “Green Border,” the Special Jury Prize winner at Venice, took three nominations – film, director and screenwriter.
“Me Captain,” Venice’s best director winner, and “The Teachers’ Lounge” each nabbed two nominations.
“Afire,” “Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry,” “How to Have Sex,” “La Chimera” and “The Promised Land” took one nomination each in major categories.
- 11/7/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
At the large, modern school where the contentious events of The Teachers’ Lounge unfurl, Carla Nowak is the newbie instructor, fresh-faced and eager. By the end of the film, she’s more chastened and anxious than bursting with gung-ho spirit — which is not to say she’s been defeated by the insanity around her. But she has learned a thing or two about the absurdity of organizational politics in the digital age of the antisocial socials, laid bare in İlker Çatak’s pointed yet never simplistic drama.
The outside world is barely glimpsed in the movie, and the microcosmic significance of the school premises, somewhere in Germany, couldn’t be clearer. As a smaller version of a contemporary tinderbox, the community of teachers, students, administrators and office workers that Çatak and his cast inhabit never feels overly weighted with symbolism. Its powder-keg dynamics are fully alive and infuriating, even as they transparently replicate,...
The outside world is barely glimpsed in the movie, and the microcosmic significance of the school premises, somewhere in Germany, couldn’t be clearer. As a smaller version of a contemporary tinderbox, the community of teachers, students, administrators and office workers that Çatak and his cast inhabit never feels overly weighted with symbolism. Its powder-keg dynamics are fully alive and infuriating, even as they transparently replicate,...
- 10/4/2023
- by Sheri Linden
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Exclusive: Filmmaker Ilker Çatak, whose terrific film The Teachers’ Lounge is Germany’s submission for Best International Feature at the 96th Academy Awards, wants to see and make films that provoke.
But what exactly does that mean?
Well, according to Çatak, most filmmakers, including himself, can feel a bit ‘same,’ despite best intentions. “We’re all kind of left-wing and woke, none of us are racist and we have the same values,” he begins during one of several conversations we’ve held over recent months at Telluride, TIFF and over email. “Sometimes I feel like I watch films, and they’re so safe. You know where the story’s going to, and I actually want to see films that sometimes provoke and are not aligned to my perception of the world.”
“I like it when a filmmaker makes a bold decision and risks something,” adds the director, whose credits include I Was,...
But what exactly does that mean?
Well, according to Çatak, most filmmakers, including himself, can feel a bit ‘same,’ despite best intentions. “We’re all kind of left-wing and woke, none of us are racist and we have the same values,” he begins during one of several conversations we’ve held over recent months at Telluride, TIFF and over email. “Sometimes I feel like I watch films, and they’re so safe. You know where the story’s going to, and I actually want to see films that sometimes provoke and are not aligned to my perception of the world.”
“I like it when a filmmaker makes a bold decision and risks something,” adds the director, whose credits include I Was,...
- 9/26/2023
- by Baz Bamigboye
- Deadline Film + TV
“Dead Poets Society.” “Mr. Holland’s Opus.” “School of Rock.” There are oh so many films about free-thinking educators who inspire young people to be their best selves in the face of stodgy institutions that would seek to limit the full scope of a student’s potential. İlker Çatak’s “The Teacher’s Lounge” is not one of those films. On the contrary, this lung-tightening scholastic thriller — which effectively imagines what seventh grade might be like if the curriculum were determined by Michael Haneke — tells the story of a nonconformist teacher who strives to do right by the most vulnerable kids in her class, only to fail spectacularly at every turn.
It’s not because she has some kind of secret blind spot, or because the German public school where she works is a magnet for any particularly vile behavior. And it’s not entirely because the paranoia enabled by...
It’s not because she has some kind of secret blind spot, or because the German public school where she works is a magnet for any particularly vile behavior. And it’s not entirely because the paranoia enabled by...
- 9/15/2023
- by David Ehrlich
- Indiewire
The European Film Academy has fired the starting gun in the race for the European Film Awards. It has recommended 19 films to its members who will then select the nominees from this list, as well as some additional titles from the summer festivals, which will be announced next month.
Among the selected films are Cannes Film Festival’s Palme d’Or winner “Anatomy of a Fall,” and the winner of its Jury Prize, “Fallen Leaves,” along with fellow Palme d’Or contenders “Kidnapped,” “Firebrand,” “La Chimera” and “The Old Oak.”
Other titles include “How to Have Sex,” which won the Un Certain Regard Award in Cannes, “The Animal Kingdom,” which also played in Un Certain Regard, Cannes Directors’ Fortnight titles “Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry” and “The Goldman Case,” and “Close Your Eyes,” which played in the Cannes Premiere section.
Also selected are “Afire,” which won the Grand Jury Prize at the Berlinale,...
Among the selected films are Cannes Film Festival’s Palme d’Or winner “Anatomy of a Fall,” and the winner of its Jury Prize, “Fallen Leaves,” along with fellow Palme d’Or contenders “Kidnapped,” “Firebrand,” “La Chimera” and “The Old Oak.”
Other titles include “How to Have Sex,” which won the Un Certain Regard Award in Cannes, “The Animal Kingdom,” which also played in Un Certain Regard, Cannes Directors’ Fortnight titles “Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry” and “The Goldman Case,” and “Close Your Eyes,” which played in the Cannes Premiere section.
Also selected are “Afire,” which won the Grand Jury Prize at the Berlinale,...
- 8/16/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Cannes Competition titles Anatomy Of A Fall, The Old Oak, and La Chimera are among the first set of titles recommended for nominations at this year’s European Film Awards.
Overall, 19 titles have been selected for the first stage of nominations by the European Film Academy Board. The selection includes films from seventeen countries. In the coming weeks, the 4,600 members of the European Film Academy will watch and vote for the selected films. The winners will be announced at the European Film Awards ceremony in Berlin on December 9.
Films eligible for the European Film Awards must be deemed European features, and have had their first official screening between June 1, 2022, and May 31, 2023. Eligible films must also have a European director. The rules state that if the director is not European, “provided they have a European refugee or similar status or have lived in Europe and worked in the European film industry...
Overall, 19 titles have been selected for the first stage of nominations by the European Film Academy Board. The selection includes films from seventeen countries. In the coming weeks, the 4,600 members of the European Film Academy will watch and vote for the selected films. The winners will be announced at the European Film Awards ceremony in Berlin on December 9.
Films eligible for the European Film Awards must be deemed European features, and have had their first official screening between June 1, 2022, and May 31, 2023. Eligible films must also have a European director. The rules state that if the director is not European, “provided they have a European refugee or similar status or have lived in Europe and worked in the European film industry...
- 8/16/2023
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
It also won the prizes for best director, screenwiting, lead actress and editing.
Ilker Çatak’s The Teachers’ Lounge was the surprise winner of the German Film Awards’ top prize of the Golden Lola for best film, ahead of the Silver Lola for Edward Berger’s All Quiet On The Western Front and the Bronze Lola for Ali Abbasi’s thriller Holy Spider.
The fourth feature from Çatak stars Benesch as a teacher struggling to keep a situation under control in a secondary school also won best director for Çatak, best screenplay for Çatak and Johannes Duncker, best lead actress...
Ilker Çatak’s The Teachers’ Lounge was the surprise winner of the German Film Awards’ top prize of the Golden Lola for best film, ahead of the Silver Lola for Edward Berger’s All Quiet On The Western Front and the Bronze Lola for Ali Abbasi’s thriller Holy Spider.
The fourth feature from Çatak stars Benesch as a teacher struggling to keep a situation under control in a secondary school also won best director for Çatak, best screenplay for Çatak and Johannes Duncker, best lead actress...
- 5/13/2023
- by Martin Blaney
- ScreenDaily
The Teachers’ Lounge, İlker Çatak’s unsettling look at a teacher at the end of her rope, beat our multi-Oscar winner All Quiet on the Western Front to win the top prize for best film at the 2023 German Film Awards, known as the Lolas.
Çatak won the best director Lola and his drama also picked up prizes for best screenplay and best editing, as well as the best actress nod for star Leonie Benesch.
But All Quiet did not go home empty-handed. The first German-language adaptation of the Erich Maria Remarque classic 1929 anti-war novel won nine Lolas, including the runner-up silver Lola for best film.
Holy Spider, Ali Abbasi’s Iranian serial killer movie, which premiered in Cannes last year and was largely financed out of Germany, won the third prize Lola in bronze.
This year’s Lolas were held amid an atmosphere of turbulence and soul-searching. Recent revelations about the behavior of Till Schweiger,...
Çatak won the best director Lola and his drama also picked up prizes for best screenplay and best editing, as well as the best actress nod for star Leonie Benesch.
But All Quiet did not go home empty-handed. The first German-language adaptation of the Erich Maria Remarque classic 1929 anti-war novel won nine Lolas, including the runner-up silver Lola for best film.
Holy Spider, Ali Abbasi’s Iranian serial killer movie, which premiered in Cannes last year and was largely financed out of Germany, won the third prize Lola in bronze.
This year’s Lolas were held amid an atmosphere of turbulence and soul-searching. Recent revelations about the behavior of Till Schweiger,...
- 5/12/2023
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The title might suggest somewhere to relax but there’s barely room to breathe in Ilker Çatak’s German school-set drama which thrums from start to almost finish with the sweaty tension of a looming maths test. At its heart - and following a quickening beat, heightened by the plucked strings of Marvin Miller’s insistent score - is new teacher Carla Nowack (Leonie Benesch).
Nowack takes the kids for maths and Pe but she soon finds it's the school ethics - and maybe even her own - that don’t add up. Çatak and his co-writer Johannes Duncker present the world within the school as a distilled microcosm of what lies outside it, complete with all its adult prejudices - joining a recent cohort of films on a similar subject, including 1982, Playground and Blue Jean. The first signs of conflict brew over a series of thefts. The school’s zero tolerance policy comes into.
Nowack takes the kids for maths and Pe but she soon finds it's the school ethics - and maybe even her own - that don’t add up. Çatak and his co-writer Johannes Duncker present the world within the school as a distilled microcosm of what lies outside it, complete with all its adult prejudices - joining a recent cohort of films on a similar subject, including 1982, Playground and Blue Jean. The first signs of conflict brew over a series of thefts. The school’s zero tolerance policy comes into.
- 3/22/2023
- by Amber Wilkinson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Leonie Benesch as an idealistic young teacher who tries to get to the bottom of a series of thefts.
Curzon FIlm has acquired UK and Ireland rights to İlker Çatak’s The Teachers’ Lounge from Brussels-based sales company Be For Films.
The Berlin Panorama title has also sold to King Records for Japan, Nonstop Entertainment for Scandinavia, Alambique for Portugal, Lighthouse Film Distribution for Singapore and Light Year Images for Taiwan.
The film stars Leonie Benesch as an idealistic young teacher who tries to get to the bottom of a series of thefts at the high school where she works.
Curzon FIlm has acquired UK and Ireland rights to İlker Çatak’s The Teachers’ Lounge from Brussels-based sales company Be For Films.
The Berlin Panorama title has also sold to King Records for Japan, Nonstop Entertainment for Scandinavia, Alambique for Portugal, Lighthouse Film Distribution for Singapore and Light Year Images for Taiwan.
The film stars Leonie Benesch as an idealistic young teacher who tries to get to the bottom of a series of thefts at the high school where she works.
- 3/10/2023
- by Louise Tutt
- ScreenDaily
Sony Pictures Classics has bought “The Teachers’ Lounge,” Ilker Çatak’s drama which world premiered at the Berlin Film Festival, for North America, Latin America and Eastern Europe (excluding Hungary).
“The Teachers’ Lounge” marks the fourth feature from Çatak, who co-wrote the screenplay with Johannes Duncker. The movie played in the Panorama section and won the Europa Cinemas Label award for Best European film, as well as the Cicae Arthouse Cinema Award.
Produced by Ingo Fliess and shot by award-winning cinematographer Judith Kaufmann (“Corsage”), “The Teachers’ Lounge” stars Leonine Benesch (“The Crown”), Michael Klammer, Rafael Stachowiak, and Eva Löbau.
Benesch stars in the film as Carla Nowak, a dedicated sports and math teacher who starts her first job at a school. She stands out among the new staff because of her idealism. When a series of thefts occur at the school and one of her students is suspected, she decides...
“The Teachers’ Lounge” marks the fourth feature from Çatak, who co-wrote the screenplay with Johannes Duncker. The movie played in the Panorama section and won the Europa Cinemas Label award for Best European film, as well as the Cicae Arthouse Cinema Award.
Produced by Ingo Fliess and shot by award-winning cinematographer Judith Kaufmann (“Corsage”), “The Teachers’ Lounge” stars Leonine Benesch (“The Crown”), Michael Klammer, Rafael Stachowiak, and Eva Löbau.
Benesch stars in the film as Carla Nowak, a dedicated sports and math teacher who starts her first job at a school. She stands out among the new staff because of her idealism. When a series of thefts occur at the school and one of her students is suspected, she decides...
- 3/2/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Leonie Benesch stars as idealistic teacher in Ilker Çatak’s fourth feature.
Sony Pictures Classics has acquired all media rights in North America, Latin America and Eastern Europe excluding Hungary to Ilker Çatak’s Berlin Panorama award winner The Teachers’ Lounge.
Çatak’s fourth feature won the Europa Cinemas Label award for Best European film in the Panorama as well as the Cicae Arthouse Cinema Award and stars Leonie Benesch stars as an idealistic sports and maths teacher.
When one of her students is suspected of being behind a series of thefts the teacher investigates and comes under intense pressure from all sides.
Sony Pictures Classics has acquired all media rights in North America, Latin America and Eastern Europe excluding Hungary to Ilker Çatak’s Berlin Panorama award winner The Teachers’ Lounge.
Çatak’s fourth feature won the Europa Cinemas Label award for Best European film in the Panorama as well as the Cicae Arthouse Cinema Award and stars Leonie Benesch stars as an idealistic sports and maths teacher.
When one of her students is suspected of being behind a series of thefts the teacher investigates and comes under intense pressure from all sides.
- 3/2/2023
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Sony Pictures Classics has picked up all rights in North America, Latin America and European Europe (excluding Hungary) to the Ilker Çatak drama The Teachers’ Lounge, which won both the Europa Cinemas Label award and the Cicae Arthouse Cinema award at this year’s Berlin Film Festival.
The news comes just a day after the SPC acquisition announcement for The Miracle Club, a Dublin-shot feature starring Laura Linney, Maggie Smith and Kathy Bates.
Related Story 2023 Independent Spirits’ Best Feature Contender ‘Our Father, The Devil’ Acquired By Cinedigm Related Story Laura Linney Comedy 'The Miracle Club' Acquired By Sony Pictures Classics Related Story Sony Pictures Classics Sets Yogi Berra Doc 'It Ain't Over' For Theatrical Release
Çatak’s fourth feature The Teachers’ Lounge watches as dedicated sports and math teacher Carla Nowak (The White Ribbon‘s Leonie Benesch) starts her first job at a school. She stands...
The news comes just a day after the SPC acquisition announcement for The Miracle Club, a Dublin-shot feature starring Laura Linney, Maggie Smith and Kathy Bates.
Related Story 2023 Independent Spirits’ Best Feature Contender ‘Our Father, The Devil’ Acquired By Cinedigm Related Story Laura Linney Comedy 'The Miracle Club' Acquired By Sony Pictures Classics Related Story Sony Pictures Classics Sets Yogi Berra Doc 'It Ain't Over' For Theatrical Release
Çatak’s fourth feature The Teachers’ Lounge watches as dedicated sports and math teacher Carla Nowak (The White Ribbon‘s Leonie Benesch) starts her first job at a school. She stands...
- 3/2/2023
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Leonie Benesch stars as idealistic teacher in Ilker Çatak’s fourth feature.
Sony Pictures Classics has acquired all media rights in North America, Latin America and Eastern Europe excluding Hungary to Ilker Çatak’s Berlin Panorama award winner The Teachers’ Lounge.
Çatak’s fourth feature won the Europa Cinemas Label award for Best European film in the Panorama as well as the Cicae Arthouse Cinema Award and stars Leonie Benesch stars as an idealistic sports and maths teacher.
When one of her students is suspected of being behind a series of thefts the teacher investigates and comes under intense pressure from all sides.
Sony Pictures Classics has acquired all media rights in North America, Latin America and Eastern Europe excluding Hungary to Ilker Çatak’s Berlin Panorama award winner The Teachers’ Lounge.
Çatak’s fourth feature won the Europa Cinemas Label award for Best European film in the Panorama as well as the Cicae Arthouse Cinema Award and stars Leonie Benesch stars as an idealistic sports and maths teacher.
When one of her students is suspected of being behind a series of thefts the teacher investigates and comes under intense pressure from all sides.
- 3/2/2023
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
This uncompromising classroom drama from director Ìlker Çatak initially tackles some insidious and uncomfortable truths, but never quite finds its full dramatic force
Ìlker Çatak’s new film is a nerve-janglingly painful and intense movie about an outbreak of stealing in a German secondary school. The uncompromising qualities initially coexist with something subtly insidious and unresolved, an unnerving demonstration of poisoned-herd mentality, all underscored by a disquieting musical score. This then gives away to a sort of melodrama which is less powerful and more generic. The dramatic tendons of the film slacken a little in its third act and I wondered if screenwriters Çatak and Johannes Duncker were sure how exactly to finish their story. Yet it hooks into the mind.
Leonie Benesch (who played Prince Philip’s ill-fated sister Cecile in The Crown) is Carla Nowak, a young, idealistic teacher of maths and Pe at a school in which...
Ìlker Çatak’s new film is a nerve-janglingly painful and intense movie about an outbreak of stealing in a German secondary school. The uncompromising qualities initially coexist with something subtly insidious and unresolved, an unnerving demonstration of poisoned-herd mentality, all underscored by a disquieting musical score. This then gives away to a sort of melodrama which is less powerful and more generic. The dramatic tendons of the film slacken a little in its third act and I wondered if screenwriters Çatak and Johannes Duncker were sure how exactly to finish their story. Yet it hooks into the mind.
Leonie Benesch (who played Prince Philip’s ill-fated sister Cecile in The Crown) is Carla Nowak, a young, idealistic teacher of maths and Pe at a school in which...
- 2/22/2023
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Film has secured multiple deals in Europe and beyond.
Brussels-based sales company Be For Films has agreed multiple deals for İlker Çatak’s The Teachers’ Lounge, which recently world premiered in the Panorama section of the Berlinale.
The film, which stars Leonie Benesch, has sold in Europe to France (Tandem), Benelux (Cineart), Italy (Lucky Red), Spain (A Contracorriente), Greece (Cinobo), Hungary (Mozinet) and Switzerland (Filmcoopi).
It has also sold to Madman for Australia and New Zealand, New Cinema in Israel, Bir Film in Turkey, Moving Turtle for Mena and Dhl Studio in South Korea.
Be For Films says discussions are ongoing for the USA,...
Brussels-based sales company Be For Films has agreed multiple deals for İlker Çatak’s The Teachers’ Lounge, which recently world premiered in the Panorama section of the Berlinale.
The film, which stars Leonie Benesch, has sold in Europe to France (Tandem), Benelux (Cineart), Italy (Lucky Red), Spain (A Contracorriente), Greece (Cinobo), Hungary (Mozinet) and Switzerland (Filmcoopi).
It has also sold to Madman for Australia and New Zealand, New Cinema in Israel, Bir Film in Turkey, Moving Turtle for Mena and Dhl Studio in South Korea.
Be For Films says discussions are ongoing for the USA,...
- 2/21/2023
- by Tim Dams
- ScreenDaily
İlker Çatak’s fourth feature stars Leonie Benesch.
Brussels-based sales company Be For Films has boarded İlker Çatak’s The Teachers’ Lounge, which world premieres in the Panorama section at next month’s Berlinale.
The film stars Leonie Benesch as an idealistic young teacher who tries to get to the bottom of a series of thefts at the high school where she works. But she reaches breaking point as she finds herself mediating between outraged parents, opinionated colleagues and aggressive students. Benesch made her name in Michael Haneke’s award-winning drama The White Ribbon, and has since gone on to star in The Crown,...
Brussels-based sales company Be For Films has boarded İlker Çatak’s The Teachers’ Lounge, which world premieres in the Panorama section at next month’s Berlinale.
The film stars Leonie Benesch as an idealistic young teacher who tries to get to the bottom of a series of thefts at the high school where she works. But she reaches breaking point as she finds herself mediating between outraged parents, opinionated colleagues and aggressive students. Benesch made her name in Michael Haneke’s award-winning drama The White Ribbon, and has since gone on to star in The Crown,...
- 1/27/2023
- by Tim Dams
- ScreenDaily
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