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European actor Branko Tomovic was born in Muenster, Germany, though his roots trace back to the Carpathians in Serbia. His parents emigrated in the 1970s from the Golubac Fortress region on the Danube, and Branko was raised between Germany and Serbia before studying acting at the renowned Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute in New York City. Tomovic made his film debut in the lead role of the award-winning American Film Institute/Sundance drama Remote Control (2001), earning the OmU Award at the Potsdam Film Festival. Now based in London, his dark, intense appearance has landed him notable roles on British television, including the unsettling main suspect Antoni Pricha, the Morgue Man, in the Jack the Ripper thriller Whitechapel (2009); the pyromaniac junky henchman Marek Lisowski in the final episodes of A Touch of Frost (1992); and Polish fighter pilot Miroslaw Feric in the WWII drama The Untold Battle of Britain (2010). Recognized as "One to Watch" by Moviescope Magazine, he has collaborated with acclaimed directors such as Ken Loach, Sönke Wortmann, and Paul Greengrass.
In 2010, Tomovic won 'Best Actor' at the San Francisco Short Film Festival and The Accolade Film Awards for his portrayal of a Serbian soldier haunted by grief and guilt after witnessing war crimes in the drama Inbetween (2008). He starred opposite Debbie Harry in Jimmy Cauty’s road movie Believe the Magic (2012) and appeared in Steve Stone’s ghost thriller Entity (2012) alongside Dervla Kirwan and Charlotte Riley. Entity received two awards at the London Independent Film Festival 2013 and Best Film at the British Horror Film Festival, where Tomovic was also nominated for Best Actor. The British Filmmakers Alliance honored him as Best International Actor for his role.
He is slated to portray the title character in the upcoming biopic Tesla. In 2014, Tomovic played Belcheck, the enigmatic and dangerous right-hand man to Jack Bauer, alongside Kiefer Sutherland in 24: Live Another Day. He also appeared opposite Brad Pitt and Logan Lerman in David Ayer’s WWII drama Fury.
In 2016, Tomovic made his directorial debut with Red, a dark thriller set in the underground world of illegal organ trafficking. He starred as Niklas alongside Dervla Kirwan and Francesca Fowler. The film was featured at numerous prestigious festivals, including the San Diego International Film Festival, Tangier International Film Festival, and the European Film Award-qualifying International Short Film Festival in Drama, earning awards and nominations at the Kraljevski Filmski Festival, Maverick Movie Awards, Naperville Independent Film Festival, and other BAFTA and European Film Award-qualifying events.
His second film as writer/director, The Smell of Petrol, addresses human trafficking and the current refugee crisis. It premiered at the Oldenburg Film Festival in 2018 and won Best UK Short Film Special Mention at the Winchester Film Festival, the Grand Prix Festival Award at the Jahorina Film Festival, and received multiple selections and nominations at BFI Future Film, BAFTA, and European Film Award-qualifying festivals.
Tomovic’s feature directorial debut is the European arthouse horror film Vampir, in which he also stars. It premiered at the Sitges International Film Festival in October 2021 in the New Visions competition, followed by its UK premiere at Raindance Film Festival and screening at Trieste Science+Fiction, where it was nominated for the Silver Méliès Award for Best European Fantastic Film. Tomovic received the Oscull Award for his special contribution to film art at the Festival of Serbian Fantastic Film and was nominated for the German Cinema New Talent Award (Förderpreis Neues Deutsches Kino) and the Hof Gold Prize (Hofer Goldpreis) at the prestigious 56th Hof International Film Festival in Germany.
