Dresen, Andreas
Photo © Andreas Dresen
Biography:
Andreas Dresen was born in Gera, East Germany, in 1963. He initially worked as a sound engineer for the Schwerin Theater, before he studied directing at the Konrad Wolf Academy for Film and Television in Potsdam-Babelsberg. He began working as a screenwriter and director in 1992. His debut film, Stilles Land, took the 1993 Berlin Film Festival by storm.
Dresen is known for his work using cast improvisation instead of a script. His breakthrough in this respect was his film Halbe Treppe.
All his films have received prestigious international prizes. His tragicomic movie Sommer vorm Balkon captures the story of two single girlfriends who are seeking love. It won major awards, such as Best Script for Wolfgang Kohlhaase (53rd San Sebastian International Film Festival, 2005) and the Silver Hugo Award for leading actresses Nadja Uhl and Inka Friedrich (41st Chicago International Film Festival, 2005).
His film, Wolke 9, about a love triangle among elderly people, was an international sensation and was nominated for the 2008 European Film Academy Award.
Andreas Dresen is also known as a theater director and has worked at the Cottbus Theater and Deutsches Theater in Berlin. His production of Kasimir and Karoline, for example, premiered in May 2006. In February 2006 he also made his debut as an opera director at the Theater Basel in Switzerland with Mozart’s Don Giovanni.
Dresen is one of Germany's most successful filmmakers. In 2013, he was a member of the jury at the Berllin International Film Festival. He lives in Potsdam.
Festivals & Awards:
| 2012 | Best Director, German Film Award for Halt auf freier Strecke |
| 2012 | German Film Critics Association Award for Halt auf freier Strecke |
| 2011 | Prize Un Certain Regard Ex-aequo, Cannes Film Festival for Halt auf freier Strecke |
| 2011 | Douglas Sirk Award, Filmfest Hamburg |
| 2009 | Best Director Prize, International Karlovy Vary Film Festival for Whisky mit Wodka |
| 2009 | German Film Award in Gold for Wolke 9 |
| 2008 | Prize Un Certain Regard, Coup de Coeur Award, Cannes Film Festival for Wolke 9 |
| 2007 | Oder of Merit of the FRG |
| 2006 | Ernst Lubitsch Award for Sommer vorm Balkon |
| 2003 | German Film Critics Association Award for Halbe Treppe |
| 2002 | Silver Hugo, Chicago International Film Festival for Halbe Treppe |
| 2002 | Silver Bear, Berlin International Film Festival for Halbe Treppe |
| 2002 | Philip Morris Freedom Prize of the American Cinema Foundation |
| 2002 | Best Director, Ghent International Film Festival for Halbe Strecke |
| 2001 | German Television Award for Die Polizistin |
| 2000 | German Film Critics Association Award for Nachtgestalten |
| 1998 | Lucas, International Festival of Films for Children and Young People for Raus aus der Haut |
| 1994 | Promotional Award, Max Ophüls Festival for Mein unbekannter Ehemann |
| 1992 | German Film Critics Association Award for Stilles Land |
Bibliography & More:
| 2013 | Schütt, Hans-Dieter. Andreas Dresen - Glücks Spiel. Berlin: be.bra verlag. |
| 2006 | Lode, David. Abenteuer Wirklichkeit – Die Filme von Andreas Dresen. Marburg: Schüren. |
Filmography:
| 2024 | In Liebe, Eure Hilde (From Hilde, With Love) |
| 2022 | Rabiye Kurnaz gegen George W. Bush (Rabiye Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush) |
| 2018 | Gundermann |
| 2016 | Timm Thaler oder das verkaufte Lachen (The Legend of Timm Thaler or The Boy Who Sold His Laughter) |
| 2014 | Als wir träumten (As We Were Dreaming) |
| 2012 | Herr Wichmann aus der dritten Reihe (Hendryk from the Back Row, doc.) |
| 2011 | Halt auf freier Strecke (Stopped on Track) |
| 2010 | 20 x Brandenburg (doc.) |
| 2009 | Whisky und Wodka (Whiskey with Vodka) |
| 2008 | Wolke 9 (Cloud 9) |
| 2005 | Sommer vorm Balkon (Summer in Berlin) |
| 2005 | Willenbrock |
| 2003 | Herr Wichmann von der CDU (Vote for Henryk! doc.) |
| 2001 | Halbe Treppe (Grill Point) |
| 2000 | Die Polizistin (The Policewoman, TV) |
| 1998 | Nachtgestalten (Night Shapes) |
| 1997 | Raus aus der Haut (Changing Skins, TV) |
| 1996 | Polizeiruf 110-Der Tausch (Police Call 110: The Exchange, TV) |
| 1995 | Heimatgeschichten: Sprung ins Glück (Hometown Stories: Jump Into Happiness, TV) |
| 1995 | Heimatgeschichten: Alte Freunde (Hometown Stories: Old Friends, TV) |
| 1995 | Das andere Leben des Herrn Kreins (The Other Life of Mr. Kreins, TV) |
| 1995 | Mein unbekannter Ehemann (My Unknown Husband, TV) |
| 1994 | Kuckuckskinder (Cuckoo's Children, doc., TV) |
| 1993 | Krauses Kneipe (Krauses' Pub) |
| 1992 | Die Brautwahl (Choosing a Bride, film for the Deutschen Staatsoper Berlin) |
| 1992 | Stilles Land (Silent Country) |
| 1991 | Lulu film (for the Paris Opera) |
| 1991 | Die Narren sterben nicht aus (Fools Won't Die Out, doc.) |
| 1990 | So schnell geht es nach Istanbul (Short Cut To Istanbul, short) |
| 1990 | Zug in die Ferne (Train In the Distance, short) |
| 1989 | Jenseits von Klein-Wanzleben (Far from Klein-Wanzleben, doc.) |
| 1988 | Was jeder muss (What Every Man Must Do, short) |
| 1988 | Nachts schlafen die Ratten (The Rats Sleep at Night, short) |
| 1987 | Konsequenzen - Peter, 25 (Consequences - Peter, 25 Years Old, short) |
| 1986 | Schritte des anderen (Another's Steps, short) |
| 1986 | Wie die Alten sungen… (Like Father, Like Son, assistant director) |
| 1985 | Der kleine Clown (The Little Clown, short) |