Born in 1978 in Hagen, North Rhine-Westphalia. In 2000, Jan-Ole Gerstner moved to Berlin, where he did an internship at the production company "X-Films Creative Pool" ("Run Lola Run", "The White Ribbon"). He then became Wolfgang Becker's personal assistant in the production of "Good Bye, Lenin!" Gerster began his studies in writing and directing in 2003 at the German Film and Television Academy in Berlin. During his studies he directed several short films and co-wrote with Wolfgang Becker the script of the "Krankes Haus" episode for the collective film "Deutschland 09". His first film "Oh Boy" was an unexpected success at the German box office. He also won numerous awards, are six Lola (the German equivalent of the Oscars). His second feature film, "Lara", a remarkable psychological study which, like "Oh Boy" is set over a 24-hour period, also won numerous awards, including the well-deserved Best Actress Award for Corinna Harfouch.
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Biography from IMDb.
- January 1, 1978 (48)
- Hagen, Germany
- Director, writer and producer
- 4 on MovieCove · 8 credits in all
What are Jan-Ole Gerster's films like?
Across a limited sample of 4 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Society and Self.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 1 · Earnest 3
Light 0 · Serious 3 · Dark 1
Grounded 3 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 0
Gentle 1 · Charged 2 · Intense 1
Steady 1 · Shifting 2 · Whiplash 1
Straight-faced 3 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 0
Slow burn 2 · Even-paced 2 · Relentless 0
Casual 1 · Engaged 2 · Full focus 1
Easy watch 0 · Affecting 3 · Heavy 1
Resolved 1 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 1
Moods and endings
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Jan-Ole Gerster's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 1 of their 4 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.
Subscription and free streaming for Jan-Ole Gerster's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
8 credits, 4 with a MovieCove page; 3 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Islands(2025)
Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films
Lara(2019)
Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films
A Coffee in Berlin(2012)
Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films
A Friend of Mine (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)
Der Brandenburger (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Freiheit (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
German Angst (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
A full career of 8 titles, 5 of them dated from 2006 to 2025.
Biggest box office
A Coffee in Berlin (2012)
Highest rated
A Coffee in Berlin (2012)
Most popular right now
Islands (2025)
Film career
- 2006Screen debut· A Friend of Mine
How do Jan-Ole Gerster's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 69th percentile, the median of all 4; across a limited sample of 4 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 69th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up2
- 50th to 74th1
- 25th to 49th1
Shape of the crowd
2 of their 4 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Cult Classic1
- Crowd Pleaser2
- Broadly Agreed1
Reviewers score the atmosphere 77/100 and the pacing 39/100 in their films, across 3 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Who does Jan-Ole Gerster work with?
People who share at least 2 of Jan-Ole Gerster's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Blaz Kutin shares the most, 2.
Writers
- Blaz KutinShared titles: Islands (2025), Lara (2019)See all 2 shared titles with Blaz Kutin
Actors
- Tom SchillingShared titles: Lara (2019), A Coffee in Berlin (2012)See all 2 shared titles with Tom Schilling
Cinematographers
- Frank GriebeShared titles: Lara (2019), Germany 09: 13 Short Films About the State of the Nation (2009)See all 2 shared titles with Frank Griebe
Producers
- Marcos KantisShared titles: Lara (2019), A Coffee in Berlin (2012)See all 2 shared titles with Marcos Kantis
- Martin LehwaldShared titles: Lara (2019), A Coffee in Berlin (2012)See all 2 shared titles with Martin Lehwald
- Michal PokornyShared titles: Lara (2019), A Coffee in Berlin (2012)See all 2 shared titles with Michal Pokorny
