Michael Koch (film director)

Michael Koch (born 2 July 1982 in Lucerne) is a Swiss film director and screenwriter.[1]

Michel Koch
Born (1982-07-02) 2 July 1982
Lucerne, Switzerland
Occupation(s)Film director and screenwriter

Life and work

At the age of 17 Koch made his acting debut at the Young Theater of Basel (Junges Theater Basel), where he appeared in further productions until 2002. In 2003 he played the lead role in the Swiss comedy Achtung, fertig, Charlie!. In the same year, Koch began studying at the Academy of Media Arts Cologne, while at the same time working occasionally as an actor for television films until 2007.[2]

As a director, Koch made several short films during his studies, which were shown at many German and foreign film festivals and received numerous awards. In 2005, his short documentary film We Are the Faithful about the chief supporter in the FC Basel fan curve was released.[3] The following short feature film Beckenrand from 2006, about a tragic confrontation between a youth clique and a lifeguard, was also nominated for the German Short Film Award in Gold in 2007.[4] For his diploma film Polar, Koch received a Special Mention at the 59th Berlin International Film Festival in 2009 and the German Short Film Award in Gold.[5]

He went on to direct two theater plays in Switzerland, which were performed in Basel in 2009,[6] 2011 and 2012.[7]

In 2016 Koch's feature-length film debut Marija was released, for which he wrote the screenplay together with Julian Großheim. In the same year, the film premiered in the international competition of the Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland. Marija screened at many German and foreign film festivals, won national and international awards, and was released in German cinemas on 9 March 2017.[8]

Koch's second feature film A Piece of Sky (Drii Winter) was screened in the international competition at the 72nd Berlin International Film Festival in 2022[9] and received a Special Mention.[10]

Furthermore, he works as a docent at the International Film School Cologne.[11]

Filmography (selection)

Director / screenwriter
  • 2005: We Are the Faithful (short film), (Wir sind dir treu), (director, screenwriter)
  • 2006: Beckenrand (short film), (director, screenwriter)
  • 2009: Polar[12] (short film), (director, screenwriter)
  • 2016: Marija (director, screenwriter)
  • 2022: A Piece of Sky (Drii Winter), (director, screenwriter)

Actor

Other
  • 2005: We Are the Faithful (cinematographer, editor, producer)
  • 2006: Beckenrand (editor)

Theater works
  • 2009: „Wilde Herzen“ by Simon Froehling, Treibstoff Theatertage Basel, Kaserne Basel, (director)
  • 2011–2012: „Mein Kopfschuss sitzt nicht“ by DeinKurt in co-production with the Kaserne Basel and in cooperation with the Staatsarchiv Basel-Stadt, (direction and concept)

Awards (selection)[13]

References
  1. Krebs, Marc (August 10, 2016). "Michael Koch: Ein feingeistiger Filmemacher, den es von Basel nach Berlin zog". TagesWoche (in German). Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  2. filmportal.de: Michael Koch - Biografie In:filmportal.de (in German). Retrieved 7 February 2022
  3. Kunsthochschule für Medien Köln: Wir sind dir treu In: khm.de. (in German). Retrieved 7 February 2022
  4. Kunsthochschule für Medien Köln: Beckenrand In: khm.de. (in German). Retrieved February 7 2022
  5. Kunsthochschule für Medien Köln: Polar In: khm.de. (in German). Retrieved February 7 2022
  6. barolino.ch: Mein Kopfschuss sitzt nicht @ Rest. Zum Goldenen Fass - Mi 06.06.12 - 20:00 In:barolino.ch. (in German) Retrieved 7 February 2022
  7. EMYL, Innenarchitektur und Szenografie, Basel, Ausstellungen, Ausstattungen und Architektur: «Mein Kopfschuss sitzt nicht - Sandweg & Velte, Die Banditen von Basel» - Bühne In:emyl.ch. (in German). Retrieved 7 Februar 2022
  8. kino.de - Marija In:kino.de. (in German). Retrieved 7 February
  9. Berlinale 2022: Die Filme des Wettbewerbs. In: berlinale.de, 19. January 2022. (in German). Retrieved 19 January 2022).
  10. Film und Medien Stiftung NRW: 72. Berlinale: Zwei Silberne Bären für „Rabiye Kurnaz gegen George W. Bush“. In:filmstiftung.de. (in German). Retrieved 21 February 2022
  11. internationale filmschule (ifs) - Lehrende / Lecturers H-L In:filmschule.de. (in German). Retrieved 7. February 2022.
  12. Michael Koch. "Official website of movie "Polar"". Polar-film.com. Archived from the original on 2018-12-09. Retrieved 2012-03-25.
  13. Michael Koch - Awards In: IMDb.com. Retrieved 3. February 2022
  14. Kunsthochschule für Medien Köln: Wir sind dir treu In: khm.de. (in German). Retrieved 7 February 2022
  15. Kunsthochschule für Medien Köln: Polar In: khm.de. (in German). Retrieved February 7 2022
  16. Kunsthochschule für Medien Köln: Polar In: khm.de. (in German). Retrieved February 7 2022
  17. Goodfellow, Melanie (July 13, 2016). "Luxbox acquires Locarno Golden Leopard contender 'Marija'". Screen Daily. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
  18. Glasgow Film Festival: Marija (N/C 15+) In:glasgowfilm.org. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
  19. MSPIFF FILM ARCHIVE: 2017 - Marija In:mspfilm.org. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
  20. Swiss Films: Marija In:swissfilms.ch. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
  21. Official Twitter account of Swiss Films In: twitter.com. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
  22. SRF: Göttlich geordnet: Die Nominationen für den Schweizer Filmpreis - Solothurner Filmtage In: srf.ch (in German). Retrieved 5 February 2022
  23. The final press release of the 55th Karlovy Vary IFF In: kviff.com. Retrieved 7 February 2022.


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