Anne Zohra Berrached


Anne Zohra Berrached is a German film director and screenwriter.

Life and career

The daughter of an Algerian father, Anne Zohra Berrached was born and raised in the GDR. Following specialized secondary school in art, she earned a university degree in social pedagogy. Anne Zohra Berrached worked for two years in London as a drama teacher before spending one year abroad in Kameron and Spain.
In the year of 2009, Anne Zohra Berrached directed her debut short movie Der Pausenclown about a Lebanese neighbour and comedian who lived in Berlin-Neukölln. Later the movie was broadcast on the German television network WDR. In the same year, after an unsuccessful attempt to get in to Film University Potsdam, Anne Zohra Berrached started her education at one of the most famous film universities of Germany, Filmacademy Baden-Wurttemberg in Ludwigsburg.
Her first feature-length film Zwei Mütter is about an homosexual couple who audition men to collect their sperm for having a child. With Two Mothers, Anne Zohra Berrached received the main award of the section Perspective German Cinema at the 63rd Berlinale.
In February 2016 Anne Zohra Berrached presented her second film, 24 Wochen, at competition of the 66th Berlinale. The movie is about a pregnant comedian woman and her husband decideding on a legal abortion for their unborn child diagnosed with down syndrome. This was the first breach of the topic of legal late term abortion in cinema and was considered taboo for over 90% of women in Germany facing a similar situation.
24 Weeks was her final degree project before she graduated from film school. As being the only German film in competition, 24 Weeks received the award of Guild German Filmartist for best picture. 24 Weeks was also honoured with the Silver Lola of Best German Film 2017 at the German Film Awards.

Filmography