Wolfgang Becker
Encyclopedia
Wolfgang Becker is a German
film director and writer. He is best known to the international audience for his work Good Bye Lenin!
(2003).
, History and American Studies at the Free University in Berlin
. He followed this with a job at a sound studio in 1980 and then began studies at the German Film and Television Academy (dffb). He started working as a freelance cameraman in 1983 and graduated from the dffb in 1986 with Schmetterlinge (Butterflies), which won the Student Academy Award in 1988, the Golden Leopard at the Locarno International Film Festival
, and the Saarland
Prime-Minister's Award at the 1988 Ophuels Festival Saarbruecken.
He directed an episode of television drama Tatort
, called Blutwurstwalzer, before making his second feature Kinderspiele (Child's Play, 1992), and the documentary Celibidache (1992).
In 1994, he co-founded the production company "X Filme Creative Pool" with Tom Tykwer
, Stefan Arndt
, and Dani Levy
. From there he worked with Tykwer on the Berlinale competition feature Das Leben ist eine Baustelle (Life is All You Get, 1997).
He was a member of the jury at the Venice Film Festival
in 2004.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
film director and writer. He is best known to the international audience for his work Good Bye Lenin!
Good Bye Lenin!
Good Bye, Lenin! is a 2003 German tragicomedy film, released internationally in 2003. Directed by Wolfgang Becker, the cast includes Daniel Brühl, Katrin Saß, Chulpan Khamatova, and Maria Simon...
(2003).
Biography
Becker studied GermanisticsGerman language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, History and American Studies at the Free University in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. He followed this with a job at a sound studio in 1980 and then began studies at the German Film and Television Academy (dffb). He started working as a freelance cameraman in 1983 and graduated from the dffb in 1986 with Schmetterlinge (Butterflies), which won the Student Academy Award in 1988, the Golden Leopard at the Locarno International Film Festival
Locarno International Film Festival
The Film Festival Locarno is an international film festival held annually in the city of Locarno, Switzerland since 1946. After Cannes and Venice and together with Karlovy Vary, Locarno is the Film Festival with the longest history...
, and the Saarland
Saarland
Saarland is one of the sixteen states of Germany. The capital is Saarbrücken. It has an area of 2570 km² and 1,045,000 inhabitants. In both area and population, it is the smallest state in Germany other than the city-states...
Prime-Minister's Award at the 1988 Ophuels Festival Saarbruecken.
He directed an episode of television drama Tatort
Tatort
Tatort is a long-running German/Austrian/Swiss , crime television series set in various parts of these countries. The show is broadcast on the channels of ARD in Germany, ORF 2 in Austria and SF1 in Switzerland...
, called Blutwurstwalzer, before making his second feature Kinderspiele (Child's Play, 1992), and the documentary Celibidache (1992).
In 1994, he co-founded the production company "X Filme Creative Pool" with Tom Tykwer
Tom Tykwer
Tom Tykwer is a German film director, screenwriter, and composer. He is best known internationally for directing Run Lola Run , Heaven , Perfume: The Story of a Murderer , and The International ....
, Stefan Arndt
Stefan Arndt
Stefan Arndt is a German film producer and managing partner of X Filme Creative Pool, which he started with fellow friends Tom Tykwer, Wolfgang Becker and Dani Levy. X Filme is one of Germany's most prospourus and famous production companies...
, and Dani Levy
Dani Levy
Dani Levy is a film maker, theatrical director and actor.-Work:Dani Levy's films include RobbyKallePaul, I Was on Mars, Meschugge, Du mich auch and Väter. Väter starred Christiane Paul...
. From there he worked with Tykwer on the Berlinale competition feature Das Leben ist eine Baustelle (Life is All You Get, 1997).
He was a member of the jury at the Venice Film Festival
Venice Film Festival
The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...
in 2004.
Filmography
- Schmetterlinge (1988)
- "TatortTatortTatort is a long-running German/Austrian/Swiss , crime television series set in various parts of these countries. The show is broadcast on the channels of ARD in Germany, ORF 2 in Austria and SF1 in Switzerland...
" (TV series) (1 episode, Blutwurstwalzer) (1991)
- Child's Play (Kinderspiele) (1992) - also writer
- Life Is All You Get (Das Leben ist eine Baustelle) (1997) - also writer and actor
- Good Bye Lenin!Good Bye Lenin!Good Bye, Lenin! is a 2003 German tragicomedy film, released internationally in 2003. Directed by Wolfgang Becker, the cast includes Daniel Brühl, Katrin Saß, Chulpan Khamatova, and Maria Simon...
(2003) - co-writer
- Welcome to São Paulo (Bem-Vindo a São Paulo) (2004) (segment)
- Ballero (2005) - also writer
- Germany 09: 13 Short Films About the State of the Nation (2009) (segment "Krankes Haus") - also writer
- Ich und Kaminski (2010) - also writer
Awards
- 1997 Berlin International Film FestivalBerlin International Film FestivalThe Berlin International Film Festival , also called the Berlinale, is one of the world's leading film festivals and most reputable media events. It is held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in West Berlin in 1951, the festival has been celebrated annually in February since 1978...
, Special Mention for Das Leben ist eine Baustelle
- 1998 Bavarian Film AwardsBayerischer FilmpreisThe Bavarian Film Awards have been awarded annually since 1979 by the State Government of Bavaria in Germany for “exceptional achievement in German filmmaking.” Along with the German Film Awards, these are the most highly regarded awards for filmmaking achievement in Germany.The Bavarian Film...
, Best Production http://www.bayern.de/Anlage19170/PreistraegerdesBayerischenFilmpreises-Pierrot.pdf for Das Leben ist eine Baustelle
- 2003 Berlin International Film Festival, Blue Angel for Good Bye Lenin!
- 2003 European Film Awards, Audience Award for Best Director for Good Bye Lenin!
- 2004 Goya AwardsGoya AwardsThe Goya Awards, known in Spanish as los Premios Goya, are Spain's main national film awards, considered by many in Spain, and internationally, to be the Spanish equivalent of the American Academy Awards....
, Best European Film for Good Bye Lenin!
- 2004 Bavarian Film Awards, Audience Award for Good Bye Lenin!
- 2004 César Awards, Best European Union Film for Good Bye Lenin!
External links
- BBC interview following Good Bye Lenin!
- "X Filme Creative Pool", webpage retrieved May 10, 2008.