The Teachers’ Lounge movie storyline. Fresh out of college, Carla Nowak (Leonie Benesch) is a new hire at a German junior high. Soon beloved by her homeroom, she takes great pride in her job, though not in her Polish heritage, which she hides from her colleagues. The school has a problem: a thief is at work and causing suspicion among students and staff.
After falling victim to the culprit’s handiwork — and with her Turkish pupil falsely accused of the crime — Carla is embroiled in a plot to entrap the real offender. With the help of her laptop, she manages to corner Friederike (Eva Löbau), who works as the school secretary and whose bright son Oskar (Leonard Stettnisch) is in Carla’s class. With the rumour mill roiling and the school newspaper weighing in, Carla is in the spotlight and neither Friederike nor Oskar, who starts spreading damaging rumours in retaliation for his mother’s dismissal, will go down without a fight.
Benesch (The White Ribbon, TIFF ’09) and Löbau — who was the lead in The Forest For the Trees, Maren Ade’s 2003 breakout film, which screened in TIFF’s Discovery programme — are outstanding as adversaries in director Ilker Çatak’s debut. Born in Berlin to Turkish immigrants, Çatak has his finger on the pulse of what makes us tick and a knack for showing how quickly things can fall apart, be they small-time schemes or entire democracies. The Teachers’ Lounge, which won the German Film Awards’ top prize of the Golden Lola for best film in 2023, is an essential reminder that no good deed goes unpunished.
The Teachers’ Lounge (German: Das Lehrerzimmer) is a 2023 German drama film directed by İlker Çatak, who co-wrote the screenplay with Johannes Duncker.It was nominated to compete for the Panorama Audience Award at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival, where it had its world premiere on February 18, 2023.
The film was an official selection at the 48th Toronto International Film Festival and 28th Busan International Film Festival in 2023. Released to critical acclaim, the National Board of Review named The Teachers’ Lounge one of the top five international films of 2023. It was nominated for Best International Feature Film at the 96th Academy Awards.
The Teachers’ Lounge (2023)
Das Lehrerzimmer
Directed by: İlker Çatak
Starring: Leonie Benesch, Michael Klammer, Rafael Stachowiak, Anne-Kathrin Gummich, Eva Löbau, Kathrin Wehlisch, Sarah Bauerett, Uygar Tamer, Özgür Karadeniz, Katinka Auberger, Jonas Albrecht
Screenplay by: İlker Çatak, Johannes Duncker
Production Design by:
Cinematography by: Judith Kaufmann
Film Editing by: Gesa Jäger
Makeup Department: Barbara Kreuzer
Music by: Marvin Miller
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some strong language.
Distributed by: Sony Pictures Classics
Release Date: February 18, 2023 (Berlin Film Festival), May 4 2023 (Germany), December 25, 2023 (United Stats)
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