Defne Halman

Defne Halman was born in New York. She studied at the United Nations International School, the School of American Ballet at Juilliard and Professional Children’s School. After she moved to Turkey, Halman studied acting and drama at the Istanbul State Conservatory of Mimar Sinan University and received her B.A. She has performed extensively in Turkish theatre, film and television. Among numerous plays in which she performed are: “Crimes of the Heart” by Beth Henley,  Bertolt Brecht′s “Mr. Puntila and his Man Matti” and Sam Shepard′s “Curse of the Starving Class”. For her role in the play “Curse of the Starving Class”, she received the Avni Dilligil Theater Award and a Best Actress Award from the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism. In addition to her work in the theatre, Halman was the long time video jockey of an MTV type television show. She also served as a main anchor on a TV program “Behind the Cameras” for its run of 7 seasons. She also performed in films by some of Turkey′s most prominent directors.

Halman was the recurring MC of the nationally televised awards ceremony of the annual International Istanbul Film Festival. She also received the Lions Award “Best Actress” for her production “Victoria”. She returned to New York in the early 90’s and has appeared in several successful off-Broadway productions. Defne Halman and writer Chris King have translated all of Orhan Veli′s poems. Halman has worked as producer and narrator at United Nations Radio and continues to present various cultural programs in the U.S. and other countries with her father, Prof. Talat Halman. In 2014, she received the award "Most Successful Best Supporting Actress" in the 18th Afife Theatre Awards for her performance in the play "Katil Joe" (Tiyatro İn).

Filmography:
1984, Fidan
1985, Kırlangıç Fırtınası
1986, Asiye Nasıl Kurtulur?
1998, İkinci Bahar
2002, Merhaba New York (TV drama)

Reference: en.wikipedia.org, lightmillennium.org, images.google.com.tr