Successful productions „Toni Erdmann“ and „Mustang“ nominated for the British BAFTA Awards
- The films by the directors Maren Ade and Deniz Gamze Ergüven nominated in the category for „Film not in the English Language“
- British Academy of Film and Television Arts announced its nominations today
- BAFTA awards ceremony on 12 February in London
London calling: the Filmstiftung-backed comedy „Toni Erdmann“ by Maren Ade and the Filmstiftung-backed debut „Mustang" by Deniz Gamze Ergüven have been nominated for a BAFTA Award in the „Film not in the English Language“ category. The nominations for the prestigious awards were announced by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts this morning. The ceremony for the BAFTA Awards, which are regarded as the „English Oscars“, will be held in London on 12 February, 2017.
„BAFTA nominations for ‚Toni Erdmann‘ and ‚Mustang‘, two Filmstiftung-backed international successes, that’s fantastic news and a wonderful acknowledgement for the two directors Maren Ade and Deniz Gamze Ergüven and their crews!“, says Petra Müller, CEO of the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW. „We are delighted for the Komplizen Film team and, in particular, for the NRW producers of ‚Mustang’, Anja Uhland and Frank Henschke, who were nominated for the Oscar last year.
This year has already seen „Toni Erdmann“ being named Best Foreign Language Film in the USA at the New York Film Critics Circle Awards and by the National Society of Film Critics as well as being nominated for the Golden Globes. In addition, the hit comedy is in the running as the German candidate for a nomination to the 89th Oscars on 24 January. The comedy also has a chance of winning a prize in the „Best International Film“ category at the International Spirit Awards held on the eve of the Oscar ceremony. Almost 780,000 cinema-goers in Germany alone have now seen the remarkable father-daughter story with Peter Simonischek and Sandra Hüller. The end of December saw the film, which was shot at locations in Aachen and Romania, starting its US theatrical run to great success on the first screens in New York and Los Angeles. „Toni Erdmann“ is a production of Komplizen Film in co-production with coop99 Filmproduktion and Missing Link Films. SWR, WDR and ARTE participated in the production as broadcasters. The Film- und Medienstiftung is the main funder (785,000 Euros), with additional backing coming from MBB, FFHSH, FFF, DFFF, FFA, BKM, ÖFI, Filmstandort Austria, MEDIA and Eurimages.
The film premiered in Cannes in 2015 and was awarded the „Europa Cinemas Label“. The film was also honoured in Sarajevo, Odessa and at the Filmfest Hamburg, among others, and won the European Parliament’s LUX Film Prize. The film received the Prix FIPRESCI – European Discovery at the European Film Awards in December 2015. „Mustang“ was also nominated for an Academy Award and Golden Globe as Best Foreign Language Film and won five Lumière Awards. In France, the drama picked up four César Awards, including the award for the best original screenplay. „Mustang“ tells a coming-of-age story about five Turkish girls fighting for their freedom and self-determination. „The film was produced by Düsseldorf-based Vistamar Filmproduktion, Cologne’s Uhlandfilm, CG Cinema (F) and BAM Films (TR). The leads are played by Günes Sensoy, Doga Zeynep Doguslu, Tugba Sungurolgu, Elit Iscan and Ilayda Akdogan. The Filmstiftung NRW supported the film with 100,000 Euros, ZDF/ARTE is a TV partner. Other backers include FFA Minitraité, Eurimages and the Doha Film Institute. World sales are being handled by France’s Kinology, with Weltkino as the German distributor.
The Düsseldorf-based composer Volker Bertelmann alias Hauschka was also nominated early this morning in the „Original Music“ category for his work on the film „Lion“ by Garth Davis. Hauschka is a composer, songwriter and experimental musician. His main instrument is the prepared piano. Hauschka has composed for such films as „Schnee von gestern“ and „The Boy“.