Talal Derki
Director, producer and writer, also cinematographer · Born July 24, 1977 (49) · Damascus, Syria
Talal Derki (Arabic: طلال ديركي ; born 24 July 1977 in Damascus, Syria of Kurdish descent) is a director, producer and screenwriter. Talal Derki studied film directing in Athens at Stavrako High Institute of Cinematographic Art and Television, graduation in 2003. He worked as an assistant director for feature film productions and was a director for different Arab TV programs & TV films between 2009 and 2012. He worked as a freelance cameraman for CNN and Thomson Reuters. Talal Derki’s short films and documentaries received awards at a variety of festivals. His feature documentary RETURN TO HOMS has won the Sundance Film Festival’s World Cinema Grand Jury Prize. In 2014 he was a member of the international Jury at IDFA. Talal Derki lives now in Exile in Berlin, Germany. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Biography from TMDB.
- July 24, 1977 (49)
- Damascus, Syria
- Director, producer and writer, also cinematographer
- 4 on MovieCove · 7 credits in all
What are Talal Derki's films like?
Across a limited sample of 4 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Power and Society.
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 4
Light 0 · Serious 1 · Dark 3
Grounded 4 · Stylized 0 · Heightened 0
Gentle 0 · Charged 1 · Intense 3
A split, not a type: Steady 3 · Shifting 1 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 4 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 0
Slow burn 4 · Even-paced 0 · Relentless 0
Casual 0 · Engaged 3 · Full focus 1
Easy watch 0 · Affecting 1 · Heavy 3
Resolved 3 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 0
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 Talal Derki'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 Talal Derki's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted.
Filmography
7 credits, 4 with a MovieCove page; 1 appearance as themselves is hidden until asked for.
Hollywoodgate(2023)
Midcredits score: 84th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films
People of the Wasteland (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2018)
Of Fathers and Sons(2017)
Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films
Ode To Lesvos (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)
Homs, chronique d'une révolte (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)
The Return to Homs(2013)
Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films
Career shape
A full career of 7 titles from 2013 to 2024.
How do Talal Derki's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 87th percentile, the median of all 4; across a limited sample of 4 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 85th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up3
- 50th to 74th1
Shape of the crowd
3 of their 4 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Crowd Pleaser3
- Mixed1
Reviewers score the atmosphere 84/100 in their films, across 3 reviewed titles; fans 87, detractors 63. 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 Talal Derki work with?
People who share at least 2 of Talal Derki's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Marion Tuor shares the most, 2.
Cinematographers and editors
- Marion TuorShared titles: Hollywoodgate (2023), Under the Sky of Damascus (2023)See all 2 shared titles with Marion Tuor
- Anne FabiniShared titles: Of Fathers and Sons (2017), The Return to Homs (2013)See all 2 shared titles with Anne Fabini
- Kahtan HassounShared titles: Of Fathers and Sons (2017), The Return to Homs (2013)See all 2 shared titles with Kahtan Hassoun
Producers
- Geralyn White DreyfousShared titles: Hollywoodgate (2023), Of Fathers and Sons (2017)See all 2 shared titles with Geralyn White Dreyfous
- Heba KhaledShared titles: Hollywoodgate (2023), Under the Sky of Damascus (2023)See all 2 shared titles with Heba Khaled
- Jenny RaskinShared titles: Under the Sky of Damascus (2023), Of Fathers and Sons (2017)See all 2 shared titles with Jenny Raskin
- Hans Robert EisenhauerShared titles: Of Fathers and Sons (2017), The Return to Homs (2013)See all 2 shared titles with Hans Robert Eisenhauer
Mixed roles
- Ibrahim Nash'atShared titles: Hollywoodgate (2023), Under the Sky of Damascus (2023)See all 2 shared titles with Ibrahim Nash'at
