Zeki Ökten (4 August 1941 – 19 December 2009) was a Turkish film director.

Biography

He was born on 4 August 1941 in Istanbul. Zeki Ökten was interested in theatre during his education at the

Haydarpaşa High School Haydarpaşa High School ( ) is an Anatolian High School in Üsküdar district of Istanbul, Turkey established in 1934. History The school was founded by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk on 26 September 1934 as a boys' school. It was a boarding and day schoo ...

. He entered his filmmaking career in 1961 as the

assistant director The role of an assistant director on a film includes tracking daily progress against the filming production schedule, arranging logistics, preparing daily call sheets, checking cast and crew, and maintaining order on the set. They also have to t ...

of Nişan Hançer directing ''Acı Zeytin''. Zeki Ökten directed his first film ''Ölüm Pazarı'' two years later in 1963. However, he stepped back to the post of assistant director as the success expected did not come. He worked then nine years long as the assistant to the renowned directors like

Ömer Lütfi Akad Omar/Umar ( ar, عمر) is a masculine given name that has different origins in three languages across the world (Arabic, Hebrew and Germanic) even though it is best known as an Arabic name and the name Omar was mentioned in the Old Testament. Oma ...

Halit Refiğ Halit Refiğ (5 March 1934 – 11 October 2009) was a Turkish film director, film producer, screenwriter and writer. He made around sixty films, including feature films, documentaries and TV serials. He is considered to be the pioneer of t ...

Memduh Ün Arif Memduh Ün (14 March 1920 – 16 October 2015) was a Turkish film producer, director, actor and screenwriter. His film, '' The Broken Pots'', was entered into the 11th Berlin International Film Festival The 11th annual Berlin Intern ...

and

Atıf Yılmaz Atıf Yılmaz Batıbeki (9 December 1925 – 5 May 2006) was a renowned Turkish film director, screenwriter, and film producer. He was very much a legend in the film industry of Turkey with 119 movies directed. He also wrote 53 screenplays an ...

. With his films ''Kadın Yapar'' in 1972 and with ''Bir Demet Menekşe'' in 1973, written by Selim İleri, he gained recognition. He was honored at the Golden Orange Film Festival in 1977 for directing the film Kapıcılar Kralı. Real success came with the films ''Sürü'' (1978) and '' Düşman'' (1979), both written by

Yılmaz Güney Yılmaz Güney (' Pütün; 1 April 1937 – 9 September 1984) was a Kurdish film director, screenwriter, novelist, and actor. He quickly rose to prominence in the Turkish film industry. Many of his works were devoted to the plight of ordinary wo ...

. ''Düşman'' won an Honourable Mention at the

30th Berlin International Film Festival The 30th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 18–29 February 1980. The Golden Bear was awarded to the American film '' Heartland'' directed by Richard Pearce and West German film '' Palermo oder Wolfsburg'' directed by Wer ...

in 1980. The film ''Sürü'' received nine more international awards, following the honors at the festivals in

Locarno , neighboring_municipalities= Ascona, Avegno, Cadenazzo, Cugnasco, Gerra (Verzasca), Gambarogno, Gordola, Lavertezzo, Losone, Minusio, Muralto, Orselina, Tegna, Tenero-Contra , twintowns =* Gagra, Georgia * Karlovy Vary, Czech Rep ...

1979 and at

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

in 1980. Zeki Ökten received his second Golden Orange award in 1983 for directing the film ''Faize Hücum''. His 1984 film ''

Pehlivan Pehlivan or Pahlevan derives from Iranian language word meaning ''noble'', ''wrestler'', ''hero'' or ''champion'' and it is a loan word in many Asiatic languages as well as middle eastern languages including Turkish surname originally given to wres ...

'' won an Honourable Mention at the

35th Berlin International Film Festival The 35th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 15 to 26 February 1985. The Golden Bear was awarded to East German film '' Die Frau und der Fremde'' directed by Rainer Simon and British film ''Wetherby'' directed by David Har ...

. The themes of his films were social problems featured in comedy. Zeki Ökten died on 19 December 2009, following heart surgery for which he was admitted the day before to the American Hospital in Istanbul. He was laid to rest at the

Zincirlikuyu Cemetery __NOTOC__ The Zincirlikuyu Cemetery ( tr, Zincirlikuyu Mezarlığı) is a modern burial ground residing on the European part of Istanbul, Turkey. It is administered by the Metropolitan Municipality. Many prominent figures from the world of polit ...

two days later following a religious funeral ceremony held at the

Teşvikiye Mosque The Teşvikiye Mosque is a neo-baroque structure located in the Teşvikiye neighbourhood of Şişli district in Istanbul, Turkey. History The mosque was originally commissioned in 1794 by Sultan Selim III, but most of the current mosque that s ...

. Zeki Ökten is succeeded by his wife Güler Ökten, a well-known Turkish actress.

Filmography

* ''Ölüm Pazari'' (1963) * ''Vurgun'' (1973) * ''Ağri Dağinin Gazabi'' (1973) * ''Bir Demet Menekse'' (1973) ... a.k.a. ''A Bunch of Violets'' (International: English title) * ''Hasret'' (1974) ... a.k.a. ''Yearning'' (International: English title) * ''Boş Ver Arkadaş'' (1974) * ''Askerin Dönüşü'' (1974) * ''Şaşkın Damat'' (1975) * ''Kaynanalar'' (1975) ... a.k.a. ''The Mothers-in-law'' (International: English title) * ''Hanzo'' (1975) * ''Kapıcılar Kralı'' (1976) * ''Sevgili Dayım'' (1977) * ''Çöpçüler Kralı'' (1977) ... a.k.a. ''The King of the Street Cleaners'' (International: English title) * '' Düşman'' (1979) ... a.k.a. ''The Enemy'' (International: English title) * ''Almanya, Acı Vatan'' (1979) * '' Sürü'' (1979) ... a.k.a. ''The Herd'' (USA) * ''Faize Hücum'' (1982) * ''Derman'' (1983) * ''

'' (1984) * ''Firar'' (1984) * ''Kurbağalar'' (1985) * ''Ses'' (1986) * ''Kan'' (1986) * ''Davacı'' (1986) * ''Düttürü Dünya'' (1988) * "''Saygilar Bizden''" (1992) TV series * ''Aşk Üzerine Söylenmemiş Herşey'' (1996) * ''Güle Güle'' (2000) * ''Gülüm ''(2003) * ''Çinliler Geliyor'' (2006) ... a.k.a. ''The Chinese Are Coming'' (International: English title: literal title)

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Okten, Zeki 1941 births Film people from Istanbul 2009 deaths Turkish film directors Best Director Golden Orange Award winners Haydarpaşa High School alumni Burials at Zincirlikuyu Cemetery