screenwriter film producer poet
Onat Kutlar was born in Alanya, Turkey in 1936. He was the grandson of Arif Pasha, an Ottoman governor of the Taif district and the son of Ali Riza Bey, a penal judge of the young Turkish Republic and later a farmer, and Meliha Hanim. He grew up in the city of Gaziantep.
He studied law at Istanbul University and philosophy in Paris.
According to the literary critic Fethi Naci, these represent a very early example of magical realism genre. He died on January 11, 1995 in Istanbul resulting from injuries sustained in bomb attack (carried out by the organization PKK) which occurred on December 30, 1994 at The Marmara Hotel"s cafeteria in Taksim. He was laid to rest at the Aşiyan Asri Cemetery.
Currently, the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) Prize in the National Competition of the Istanbul International Film Festival is named after him to commemorate his contributions to the Turkish cinema.
Ishak (1959) Turkish Language Association Short Story Award (1960) Hakkari"de Bir Mevsim (1983) C.I.C.A.E. Award - Honorable Mention FIPRESCI Prize Competition Interfilm Award - Otto Dibelius Film Award Competition Silver Berlin Bear Special Jury Prize Berlin Film Festival Nominated Golden Berlin Bear Hazal (1980) San Sebastián International Film Festival—Best New Director Ali Özgentürk Prades Film Festival, First Prize Manheim Film Festival, Golden Ducat Award Mannheim Film Festival, Ecumenical Jury Award Mannheim Film Festival, Audience Award Den Haag Film Festival, First Prize Yusuf ile Kenan (1979) Milano Film Festival.
In 1985, he was a member of the jury at the 35th Berlin International Film Festival.
