A Horse On The Balcony

Mika, age 10, is afflicted with a light form of autism making it hard to communicate with others but giving him a great talent for mathematics. One winter night Mika hears a whinny and on the neighbouring balcony sees a horse. To solve the mystery he teams up with Dana, a lively girl who loves to imagine herself an Indian princess, and finds out that the horse has been won in a lottery by a new neighbour, Sascha, former mathematician and gambler who wants to sell it to pay his debts. Mika becomes fond of the animal and offers to help Sascha take care of it. The two discover that the horse is a thoroughbred called Bucephalus. Although too old to race, the horse would be a perfect companion for Mika. But the boy and his single mother, Lara, can’t afford to keep a horse. Bucephalus seems destined for the slaughterhouse but Mika and Dana do everything possible to save him.

The filmmaker

Was born 1981 in Bad Salzuflen, a small town in Germany. His origins are Kurdish from Turkey. He began work in the film industry in 2003 in Hamburg as production aide to the first assistant director. Since 2006 he has been studying film direction and screenplay writing under professor Michael Haneke at the Film Academy of Vienna. His first short film Cheeese… received more than 65 invitations to festivals, winning 15 awards. His debut feature film, Your Beauty Is Worth Nothing, in 2012 won six national awards in Turkey, including Best Film, Best Screenplay and Best Actor. In 2011 he was awarded the Vienna Film Academy Honour for Exemplary Work and Artistic Values.