Hulki Saner

Hulki Saner — Biography

Born in Istanbul, Hulki Saner trained in chemistry, spent a brief spell in the United States, then returned to study voice at the Istanbul Municipal Conservatory; he performed on the opera stage and led his own jazz ensemble in nightclubs. He entered the film industry in 1956 by scoring two pictures, launched a production company that same year, and eventually ran one under his own name, Saner Film. In 1958 he became a director as well with Sevmek Günah mı?, generally writing his own screenplays.

He became known as a leading comedy director through the seven-film Turist Ömer series starring Sadri Alışık, and worked with Türkan Şoray on Anaların Günahı and Fıstık Gibi Maşallah as well as directing the cult favorite Hababam Taburu. As a producer he also brought several of the era's leading singers to the screen in musical films, and he wrote and composed one of their songs himself. In 2002 he received a lifetime achievement honor from the Golden Orange Film Festival; he died on 20 July 2005.