Sibel Kekilli Biography, Family Life And Other Interesting Facts

Quick Facts

Over the years, the German film industry has produced several famous and successful actors and actresses, one of which is our own darling Sibel Kekilli. Best considered as an inspiration and a role model to many up-and-coming German youths with interest in acting, she has starred in various television series and films and has several awards to show for her hard work and dedication to the career she loves so much.

Kekilli made her debut acting appearance in the year 2002. This comes after a casting director discovered her while she was shopping in Cologne. She was later invited to audition for a role in the German film Head-On which she eventually won after out-smarting 350 rivals. The movie was released two years later and was a massive success, winning several prizes at film festivals and fetching the actress the 2004 Bambi prize for “best shooting star” for her superlative role.

Other films she has starred in include Fay Grim (2006), Kebab Connection (2004), Winter Journey (2006), Eve Dönüş Esma (2006), The Last Train (2006), When We Leave (2010), and others. Her role as the wife of a man who was wrongly tortured and imprisoned in Eve Dönüş earned her the Best Actress award at the Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival held in 2006. Similarly, her role in the 2009 film When We Leave won her the Lola for Best Actress in the year 2010. Kekilli played the fictional character Umay, a young Turkish lady who embarked on a journey to Berlin from Istanbul to meet her family.

She was also cast in American fantasy drama series Game of Throne in 2010 as Shae, after which scored another acting gig on Tatort, a German police procedural television series. She left the show in 2017 after making appearances in 14 feature-length episodes.

In addition to acting, Sibel has a very strong passion for politics. In fact, she is an activist and a major campaigner against violence against women.

Sibel Kekilli’s Biography

The German actress was born on 6th June 1980 in Heilbronn. She is of Turkish descent while her nationality is German. Her parents are originally from Turkey but later moved to Germany in 1977. The actress has a twin sister whose name is not known to the public.

Kekilli completed her high school education with wonderful grades at the age of 16, after which she enrolled and completed a 30-month training program on public administration. She eventually served as an administrative assistant at Heilbronn city hall upon completion of her studies. She would later relocate to Essen, where she took up various odd jobs. Sibel reportedly worked as a nightclub manager, bouncer, waitress, pornographic film actress, as well a cleaner. She is currently based in Hamburg, Germany.

Family Life Of The Actress

The identity of her parents is not known and the actress has a twin sister whose name is not known to the public. Additionally, the Head-On actress is presumed to be single. She has never been married neither is it known if she has a boyfriend or not.

Other Interesting Facts About Sibel Kekilli

1. When Sibel Kekilli started filming newly, she faced a lot of challenges at the time and also had a difficult time coping with it. This led her to undergo an appendectomy while filming in Turkey.

2. In 2004, precisely after her first film was released, the actress’s pornographic work was publicized by Bild-Zeitung, a popular German tabloid newspaper. Appalled and disappointment with the ugly development, Sibel’s parents severed all contact with her. Bild-Zeitung, was nonetheless, berated by the German Press Council for the manner in which it handled the story. The council stepped in after the actress tearfully raised alarm during a televised acceptance speech about the “media rape” and “dirty smear campaign” being orchestrated against her.

3. At an anti-domestic violence programme held in December 2006 in Berlin, the actress claimed that “violence belongs to the culture of Islam”. Her utterance would force the Turkish consul general to leave the room.

4. During an interview with Der Spiegel in March 2007, Sibel admitted that she is not part of any religion, although she has respect for all religions.

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5. Kekilli was unveiled as the “Author of Freedom” by Friedrich Naumann Foundation in May 2015, in honour of a speech she gave on violence against women at an International Women’s Day event at Schloss Bellevue in March 2015. The speech earned her praise and wide media coverage in Germany.

6. She is a die-hard supporter of Terre des Femmes (which means Women’s Earth), a non-profit women’s rights organization founded in 1981 in Hamburg. The Berlin-headquartered organization has more than 3,500 members and patrons.

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