Turkish director Nuri Bilge Ceylan won another prize in Cannes
Internationally reputed Turkish filmmaker Nuri Bilge Ceylan has accepted a top award at the 64th Cannes Film Festival for his drama ‘Bir Zamanlar Anadolu’da’ (Once Upon a Time in Anatolia).
American director Terrence Malick took home the top prize at the 64th edition of the festival for his ambitious work ‘The Tree of Life’
Nuri Bilge Ceylan poses after being awarded with the Grand Jury Prize at the 64th Cannes Film Festival.
Turkish director Nuri Bilge Ceylan picked up another international award Sunday, winning the prestigious Cannes Film Festival’s Grand Jury Prize for his most recent work, “Bir Zamanlar Anadolu’da” (Once Upon a Time in Anatolia).
“Thank you for selecting my long and difficult movie one more time,” Ceylan spoke at the award ceremony, adding that he did not expect to win the prize. ”Screening it on the last day, I thought it would be too tiring for the jury” he also commented in a press conference following the announcement.
When asked if he felt burdened by a responsibility to present Turkish cinema to the world, Nuri Bilge Ceylan answered, “Turkish cinema is changing for the better.”
The director shared the prize with Belgian brothers Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne, two-time winners of the Palme d’Or, for their troubled-youth drama “The Kid With a Bike.”
Produced by Zeynep Özbatur Atakan, the 150-minute “Once Upon a Time in Anatolia” tells the story of police looking for a dead man in the hills of Anatolia. When the body is at last dug up, themes of guilt and adultery come to the surface.
The cast includes Yılmaz Erdogan, Taner Birsel, Ahmet Mümtaz Taylan and Muammer Uzuner. A Turkey and Bosnia &Herzegovina co-production, the film was supported by Eurimages, the Council of Europe’s fund for the co-production, distribution and exhibition of European cinematographic works.
Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s Cannes résumé
Turkish filmmaker Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s first short film, “Koza” (Cocoon), was screened in the 1995 Cannes Film Festival.
His third feature, “Uzak” (Distant), received many awards including the Grand Jury Prize and the Best Actor Prize at Cannes in 2003.
Later, Ceylan’s 2006 film, “İklimler” (Climates), won the FIPRESCI Movie Critics’ Award at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival, while the filmmaker also picked up Cannes’ best director award in Cannes 2008 for “Üç Maymun” (Three Monkeys).
Nuri Bilgi Ceylan was a jury member for the International Competition at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival.
