Ferzan Özpetek

Ferzan Özpetek (b. February 3, 1959, Turkey) is a Turkish screenwriter and film director who currently resides in Italy.

Biography

Özpetek was born in Istanbul in 1959. He moved to Italy in 1977 to study at the La Sapienza University in Rome. Later he attended directing courses at the Accademia d’Arte Drammatica "Silvio D’Amico" in Rome before working as an assistant director with Massimo Troisi, Maurizio Ponzi, and other Italian directors. Özpetek made his directorial debut in 1997 with "Hamam" (also released as "Il bagno turco" and "Steam: The Turkish Bath"). The movie garnered considerable critical success and was later released in USA. His second film "Harem Suare" was a lyrical depiction of the last days of Ottoman Empire.

Ferzan Özpetek is an openly gay director citation |url=http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1589/is_2002_Oct_1/ai_92084108 |title=Young Turk in old Rome |periodical=The Advocate |date=October 1, 2002 |first=Michael |last=Giltz |accessdate=2007-11-02] [Hürriyet Newspaper Online - [http://arsiv.hurriyetim.com.tr/hur/turk/01/03/16/yasam/08yas.htm "Saklamıyorum ben eşcinselim (I don't hide it, I'm gay)"] tr icon] who deals with sexuality issues in several of his films. Such as "Le Fate Ignoranti" ("Cahil Periler" in Turkish), a story of a woman (played by Margherita Buy) who discovered that her late husband had a long-lasting relationship with a male lover (starring Stefano Accorsi). After being devastated, she began to build a friendly relationship with him, learning more about her husband and the secret life he used to spend, in that gay world she couldn't imagine at all.His "La Finestra di fronte" ("Karşı Pencere" in Turkish) won a Crystal Globe award in Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. Senior Italian actor Massimo Girotti played his last role in this film.Another movie is "Cuore Sacro", the touching portrait of a young manager that discovers the way to reach the hidden space in her soul through her dead mother, and starts dedicating herself in looking after socially rejected people. His feature film "Saturno contro" was released in Italy in February 2007 and will have its U.S. premiere on 20 June 2008 at the San Francisco Frameline film festival.

Filmography

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)

Director

* "Il Bagno turco" ("Hamam", 1997)
* "Harem Suare"' (1999)
* "Le Fate ignoranti" ("His Secret Life", 2001)
* "La Finestra di fronte" ("Facing Windows", 2003)
* "Cuore Sacro" (2005)
* "Saturno contro" (2007)
* "Un Giorno perfetto" (2008)

Awards

Only awards won for best direction or best film are included.

* "Facing Windows": [IMDb - [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0352343/awards "Awards for Finestra di fronte, La"] ]
** 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

* "Il Bagno Turco" ("Hamam") [IMDb - [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119248/awards "Awards for Hamam"] ]
** Golden Orange (Antalya International Film Festival)
*** Best film
*** Best direction
** Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists Silver Ribbon award
*** Best Producer

* "Le Fate Ignoranti" ("The Ignorant Fairies") [IMDb - [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0274497/awards "Awards for Fate ignoranti, Le"] ]
** Austin Gay & Lesbian International Film Festival
*** Best Feature
** New York Lesbian and Gay Film Festival
*** Best Feature

References

* Biyografi.net - [http://www.biyografi.net/kisiayrinti.asp?kisiid=2715 "Biography of Ferzan Özpetek"]
* Biyografi.info - "Biographies" : [http://www.biyografi.info/kisi/ferzan-ozpetek "Ferzan Özpetek"]

External links

* [http://www.ferzanozpetek.com/ Official website]
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