A COFFEE IN BERLIN to Debut at the Landmark Sunshine Theater, Today

The film A COFFEE IN BERLIN will soon be released by Music Box Films and opens in NYC at the Landmark Sunshine on June 13th, 2014.

Jan Ole Gerster's wry and vibrant feature debut A COFFEE IN BERLIN, which swept the 2013 German Oscar Awards, paints a day in the life of Niko (Tom Schilling, GENERATION WAR, THE BAADER MEINHOF COMPLEX), a twenty-something college dropout going nowhere fast. Niko lives for the moment as he drifts through the streets of Berlin, curiously observing everyone around him and oblivious to his growing status as an outsider. Then on one fateful day, through a series of absurdly amusing encounters, everything changes: his girlfriend rebuffs him, his father cuts off his allowance, and a strange psychiatrist dubiously confirms his 'emotional imbalance'. Meanwhile, a former classmate insists she bears no hard feelings toward him for his grade-school taunts when she was "Roly Poly Julia," but it becomes increasingly apparent that she has unfinished business with him. Unable to ignore the consequences of his passivity any longer, Niko finally concludes that he has to engage with life. Shot in timeless black and white and enriched with a snappy jazz soundtrack, this slacker dramedy is a love letter to Berlin and the Generation Y experience.

TOM SCHILLING (Niko Fischer) - Tom Schilling's acting career began at the tender age of twelve, when he was hired by the Berliner Ensemble to perform in the play 'In the Shadow of the Moon'. This was followed by four years of stage work.

Born in 1982, he made his television debut in 1999 as Tucky in Ben Verbong's crime show 'Kinder der Gewalt', before his big screen debut in Friedemann Fromm's thriller SCHLARAFFENLAND. A year later, he played a supporting role in the comedy EXIT TO HEAVEN. His big break came with Hans-Christian Schmid's successful literary adaptation, CRAZY, for which, alongside Robert Stadlober, he was awarded Best Newcomer for the Bavarian Film Prize 2000. In 2002, Schilling played the lead in Michael Gutmann's coming-of-age film HEART IN THE HEAD. In 2003 he appeared in Benjamin Quabeck's homage to the beginnings of the German New Wave, IN YOUR YOUTH, and a year later in Dennis Gansel's NAPOLA.

Schilling can also be found In Oskar Roehler's two films, AGNES AND HIS BROTHERS (2004) and ELEMENTARY (2006), in anarchic Berlin-based BLACK SHEEP (2007), his third collaboration with Robert Stadlober, in Uli Edel's THE BAADER MEINHOF COMPLEX, and alongside Götz George in MEIN KAMPF; THE STORY OF ADOLF HITLER.

JAN OLE GERSTER (Director) - Following his civil service, including training as a paramedic, Jan Ole Gerster completed an internship at X Filme Creative Pool GmbH, where he worked as Wolfgang Becker's personal assistant and coordinator during the preparation, filming, editing and post-production of GOOD BYE, LENIN! In 2003 Jan Ole Gerster began his studies in directing and screenwriting at the German Film and Television Academy in Berlin.

From 2003 to 2009, he completed several projects, including the documentary The Making Of Good Bye, Lenin! and wrote the script for SICK HOUSE, part of the short film series GERMANY 09-13 SHORT FILMS ON THE STATE OF THE NATION (which also featured directors Tom Tykwer, Wolfgang Becker, Fatih Akin and Dani Levy, amongst others). A COFFEE IN BERLIN (titled OH BOY in Germany) is Gerster's feature film debut.

CREATIVE TEAM:
Director: Jan Ole Gerster
Screenplay: Jan Ole Gerster
Producers: Marcos Kantis, Alexander Wadouh
Cinematography: Philipp Kirsamer
Editing: Anja Siemens
Costume Designer: Juliane Maier, Ildiko Okolicsanyi
Production Designer: Juliane Friedrich
Music: The Major Minors, Cherilyn Macneil

Language: German (with English subtitles)
Running Time: 1h 28min
Color: Black & White