İlker Çatak

İlker Çatak was born in Berlin in 1984 and grew up in Istanbul. He studied directing in Berlin and Hamburg. His graduation film FIDELITY won numerous awards, including the Student Academy Award in Gold for Best International Short Film. His feature film debut ONCE UPON A TIME IN INDIAN COUNTRY was released in 2017. Two years later, he presented his second feature film, I WAS, I AM, I WILL BE. The film premiered at the Munich Film Festival in 2019, where it received two awards, and in early 2020—after multiple nominations for the German Film Award—it won the Bronze Lola for Best Feature Film.

In 2021, İlker Çatak adapted Finn-Ole Heinrich’s bestselling novel STAMBUL GARDEN for the screen. He has also worked in television, directing one episode of TATORT. His fifth film THE TEACHERS’ LOUNGE premiered at the Berlinale in 2023, received numerous awards, and was nominated in 2024 for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film.

His latest film, YELLOW LETTERS, will have its world premiere in the Competition section of the 76th Berlin International Film Festival and is set to be released in numerous territories worldwide.

Johannes Duncker

Born in 1983 in Germany, Johannes grew up in Istanbul as the son of a Protestant ministerial family. He studied in Cologne and Rome and graduated in theatre, film and television studies as well as English literature and history with a master's thesis on the aesthetics of digital film.

Johannes has written and directed numerous internationally awarded short films. He currently works as a freelance filmmaker and is the director of KFFK/Shortfilm Festival Cologne.

The film THE TEACHERS' LOUNGE based on his first feature length screenplay (co-written with İlker Çatak) had its world premiere at the 73. Berlin Film Festival and won five Lolas including "Best Screenplay" at the German Film awards. The screenplay has been published by Reclam Verlag in May 2023 and has been adapted for the stage. In January 2024 the film was nominated as "Best International Feature Film" at the Academy Awards.