Biket İlhan (1945 -    )

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Biket İlhan, who was born in Izmir in 1945, stayed with his grandfather and grandmother until 1965 after his father was appointed to the east. İlhan, who started his education life at Ankara Primary School in Izmir, later continued his education as a boarding student at Ankara College. He completed his undergraduate education at Gazi University, Faculty of Education, Department of English. İlhan, who taught English in Izmir and Ankara for 14 years, married poet Atilla İlhan in 1968. While he was teaching, he focused on cultural and artistic activities. Many events such as his father's military service, the economic turmoil in Turkey, the War of Independence and its aftermath were effective in the formation of Biket İlhan's cinema. Biket İlhan, who moved to Istanbul in 1981, wrote the scripts of the TV series "Eight Columns Headline" and "Paranın Kiri". In 1982, he had his first assistant experience with the movie "I Buried You in My Heart". İlhan, whose assistantship period lasted for many years, worked both at TRT and in important movies. 

Having met many people in the industry, İlhan decided to make films himself because the directors he assisted stopped producing films. In 1992, he shot a three-episode series called "Last Hope". He shot the movie "Sokaktaki Adam" (1995), set in Istanbul in the 1950s, upon the request of the Ministry of Culture. The script of the film was written by Atilla İlhan and Ülkü Karaosmanoğlu. The movie "Kayıkçı", which he made in 1998, continued where the movie "Sokaktaki Adam" (1995) ended. "The Boatman", the sequel to the movie "The Man on the Street", which was shot on a small budget, was made with the support of Greek producer Panos Papahadsis. 

İlhan received an award from Suna Yıldızoğlu's Cinema Writing Association for his movie "Sokaktaki Adam". The movie “The Boatman” failed at the box office because it was released after the 1999 earthquake. While individual stories and existential problems were discussed in Biket İlhan's first period, his recent period includes historical-based fictions and documentation. In 2005, he shot the movie "The Dark Side of the Moon", which tells the story of four prisoners who escaped from prison. He wrote and directed the movie "The Blue-Eyed Giant", which tells the life of the famous poet Nazım Hikmet, in 2007.

 

Producer Filmography 

The Man on the Street, 1995, Director: Biket İlhan, Screenplay: Atilla İlhan, Ülkü Kara Osmanoğlu, Director of Photography: Colin Mounier, Cast: Metin Belgin, Suna Yıldızoğlu, Selda Üzer, Mustafa Avkıran, Ali Sürmeli, Süeda Can, Erdoğan Seren, Ayton Sert , Civan Canova, Tunca Yönder, Oktay Korunan, Erkan Can, Cemal Ünlü, Erdal Tosun, Producer: Biket İlhan.

Kayıkçı, 1999, Director: Biket İlhan, Screenplay: Ülkü Kara Osmanoğlu, Metin Belgin, Director of Photography: Colin Mounier, Music: Thesia Panayiotou, Cast: Mehmet Ali Alabora, Katherina Mautsatsos, Mustafa Avkıran, Eleni Philippa, Levent Özdilek, Peridis Lianos Producer : Biket İlhan.

Life's Only Journey, 2000, Director: Lakis Papastathis, Screenplay: Lakis Papastathis, Elena Pega, Music:  Cast: Roula Pateraki, Frangiski Moustaki, Ilias Logothetis, Producer: Biket İlhan.

 

Awards: 

Man on the Street (1995)

32nd Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival (1995) “Best Supporting Actor” (Mustafa Aykıran)

9th Adana Golden Boll Film Festival (1995) Çukurova Journalists Association "Special Award"

8th Ankara International Film Festival (1996) “Best Art Director” (Yudum Yontan), “Best Supporting Actor” (Ali Sürmeli), “Best Promising Actress” (Süeda Can) 

ÇASOD (Contemporary Cinema Actors Association) “Best Actor” (Ali Sürmeli) 

7th Orhon Murat Arıburnu Awards (1996) “Best Film Special Jury Award”

SİYAD (Cinema Writers Association) (1996) “3rd Best Film” (Suna Yıldızoğlu) “Best Actress” and “Best Supporting Actor” (Mustafa Aykıran, Ali Sürmeli)

The Blue-Eyed Giant (2007)

ÇASOD Contemporary Cinema Actors Association (2008) "Best Actor" (Yetkin Dikinciler) "Promising Actor" (Ferit Kaya) 

12th Dadaş Film Festival (2007) “Best Actor” (Yetkin Dikinciler)

Source

Ergezen, Elif. (2020). Biket İlhan. https://gorselhafiza.org.tr/biket-ilhan.php (Access Date: 20.10.2023).

Evren, M. Burçak. (2014). 100 Years of Turkish Cinema. T.R. Culture and Tourism Ministry.

İlhan, Biket (2016, December 10). (P. Fontini, Interviewed) Istanbul, Cihangir.

Özgüç, Agâh. (2012). Encyclopedic Dictionary of Turkish Movies. Istanbul: Horizon International.

Özgüç, Agâh. (1994). Turkish Film Directors Dictionary. Istanbul: Afa Publications.

Öztürk, S. Ruken. (2004). The “Feminine” Face of Cinema: Female Directors in Turkey. Istanbul: Om Publishing House.