Love, Spells and All That

Ümit Ünal : 2019
Aşk, Büyü vs.

We all believe in certain ideas and dedicate our lives to them. The story of two women who question their belief in love and the nature of reality. Eren and Reyhan had a romance at the respective ages of 16 and 17. Eren is the daughter of an influential politician, while Reyhan's father is the caretaker at Eren's family summer house on Büyükada, an İstanbul island. Reyhan remembers the romance as "Rich girl falls for a poor girl. A perfect melodrama!" When the girls are found out, Eren's family forces them to break up, and banishes Reyhan and her father from the island. Years of not seeing each other follow. Until Eren returns to the island 20 years later. Is love real or a superstitious notion like a magic spell? The two women meet again 20 years on and remember the passionate and painful love affair of their teens. They spend a day journeying through memories and trying to undo a forgotten love spell. Ümit Ünal's feature was winner of the Turkish Film Critics' Association Best Film Award when it premiered in competition at Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival 2019.

Scent of My Daughter

Olgun Özdemir : 2019
Kızım Gibi Kokuyorsun

Beatrice's life changes dramatically during the terrorist attack in Nice in July 2016 where she loses her parents, her husband and six-year-old daughter, who came to admire the fireworks on the famous Promenade des Anglais. Beatrice, fulfilling the wishes of her father, decides to repatriate the bodies in his native Armenian village in Hatay, Turkey, near the Syrian border. Beatrice desperately tries to commit suicide when Hevi, a minority Yezidi girl, prevents her from taking her own life. Hevi makes her understand that she escaped from the hands of her persecutors but she has a sister, who must be in one of the refugee camps around the area. Beatrice decides to help her to find her sister, accompanied by Ibrahim, a young Turkish expatriate who came to visit his family. Together, the three strangers whose lives were shattered by tragic events, find themselves on an amazing journey searching for strength and hope. Olgun Özdemir's feature premiered at Shanghai International Film Festival 2019, and had its Turkish premiere at International Bosphorus Film Festival 2019.

A Tale of Three Sisters

Emin Alper : 2019
Kız Kardeşler

The three sisters, twenty-year-old Reyhan, sixteen-year-old Nurhan and Havva who is thirteen, all live with their father in a remote village in central Anatolia. One after the other they were sent away to town to work as housemaids, but each of them has now returned. The last of the sisters to do so is Nurhan. She beat the local doctor's son because he wet his bed every night. When Reyhan returned home pregnant, her father hastily married her off to the shepherd, Veysel. One day, the inebriated Veysel rises up against the village elder; his actions have dramatic consequences. Even if the dream of a better future does not come true for any of these young women and they always seem to be getting into arguments with each other, they nonetheless steadfastly stick together. While they wait for the snow-covered roads to become passable again, father and daughters pass the time with stories. A fairy tale in haunting images that portrays a society in which neither women nor men have a chance to break their predetermined cycle. Emin Alper's feature premiered in competition at Berlin International Film Festival 2019.

Glaubenberg

Thomas Imbach : 2018

Lena is an intelligent and very pretty 16-year-old. She lives with her older brother Noah and her parents in an old house in Oerlikon, Northern Zürich. Noah, a likeable young man of 19, has just successfully completed his baccalaureate and is eager to get on with his life but Lena does not want to let him go. When the family sees Noah off at the airport – he is going to İzmir as an archaeological intern – Lena is practically heartbroken. The love Lena feels for Noah is more than sisterly love – and is a love so intense that it is experienced as a form of madness. She tries to cope, but plagued by her dreams, the nights become a constant conflict with forbidden feelings, so much so that she decides to stop sleeping. To distract herself, she encourages Noah's friend Enis. But she is so obsessed with her brother that she cannot curb her feelings. Lena starts daydreaming, living more in a fantasy world than in real life. When she finally brings herself to confess to Noah, he is shocked and repels her. Lena then embarks on a journey into the unknown. Thomas Imbach's feature premiered in competition in the Concorso internazionale section at Locarno Film Festival 2018.

Sibel

Çağla Zencirci & Guillaume Giovanetti : 2018

25-year-old Sibel lives with her father and sister in Kusköy, a secluded village in the mountains of Turkey's Black Sea region. Sibel is a mute, but she communicates by using the ancestral whistled language of the area. Rejected by her fellow villagers who consider her disabled, she relentlessly hunts down a wolf that is said to be prowling in the neighbouring forest, sparking off fears and fantasies among the village women. There she crosses paths with a fugitive, a deserter from the Turkish army. Injured, threatening and vulnerable, he is the first one to take a fresh look at her. A new perspective comes to Sibel: for her this enigmatic character represents a contrast she has long been searching for, a breath of fresh air that whisks her far away from the stifling rules imposed by the patriarchal society in which she lives. Çağla Zencirci and Guillaume Giovanetti's third feature received the FIPRESCI Award and the Ecumenical Award when it premiered in competition in the Concorso internazionale section at Locarno Film Festival 2018.

The Wild Pear Tree

Nuri Bilge Ceylan : 2018
Ahlat Ağacı

For some, the countryside is a boundless place of exile where all hopes and dreams merge with despair like the coinciding destinies of fathers and sons. Sinan is passionate about literature and has always wanted to be a writer. Returning to the village where he was born, he pours his heart and soul into scraping together the money he needs to be published, but his father's debts catch up with him. The story of a young man who senses with a feeling of guilt that he is different in a way that he cannot come to accept, that he is being dragged towards a destiny that he cannot embrace, as well as the rich mosaic of people surrounding him, without favouring or being unfair to anybody. As the saying goes, "what a father keeps hidden is revealed in the son". One cannot help but inherit certain traits from one's father: weaknesses, habits, tics, among other things. The film tells the story of a boy being inevitably dragged into the same destiny as his father, in a plot loaded with painful experiences. Nuri Bilge Ceylan's feature premiered in competition at Festival de Cannes 2018.

The Stone

Orhan Eskiköy : 2017
Taş

Over the centuries, the inhabitants of a remote village have created an intimate bond with the infertile soil, and their modest dwellings seem to merge into the ubiquitous stone and ruins. The old stone walls whisper secret wishes and wait for a miracle or at least a spark of hope. The walls confide their prayers to Emete, and soon afterwards she reconnects with her missing son Hasan after an absence of years. Or does she merely succumb to strong desire and begin to see her son in the face of the stranger to whom she offers shelter? The sinister Officer, however, also arrives in the village bent on taking the runaway back, otherwise he'll deprive the villagers of the one thing they hold dear – stone. Bordering on archetype, the story speaks in mysterious allusions, leaving the viewer – fascinated by a region whose forbidding nature is entwined with reassuring myths – to wander uncertainly through the meanders of blind faith, self-deception, and real hope. Orhan Eskiköy's feature premiered at İstanbul Film Festival 2017, and had its international premiere in competition in the East of the West section at Karlovy Vary International Film Festival 2017.

Inflame

Ceylan Özgün Özçelik : 2017
Kaygı

Hasret works for a Turkish television news channel which prides itself on the ambitious maxim: 'What you see is the truth. What you hear is the truth.' But then, suddenly, things begin to change. Editors are told not to comment on politicians' speeches; the news is manipulated and the use of social networks on internal computers is prohibited. Bullied by her overbearing boss, Hasret soon finds herself without her job as an independent film editor. She withdraws into her flat where she begins to experience hallucinations: she hears voices, the walls move and she sees the curtains on fire. Moreover, she begins to realise that her parents were not killed in a traffic accident twenty years ago but must have died in some other, horrific way. What is being kept from her? Ceylan Özgün Özçelik's psychological thriller, her feature debut, premiered in the Panorama section at Berlin International Film Festival 2017.

The Night Manager

Susanne Bier : 2016

In Cairo at the height of the Arab Spring, hotel night manager Jonathan Pine receives a plea for help from the beautiful Sophie Alekan. As the mistress of the powerful but dangerous hotel owner, Sophie has evidence of an arms deal that could help crush the popular uprising. Compelled to do what he thinks is right, Pine makes contact with his friend at the British Embassy. But his actions unwittingly draw him into the terrifying world of ruthless arms dealer, Richard Roper. When Sophie's information makes its way to Angela Burr, a government anti-corruption agent intent on bringing down Roper's empire, a leak in her network triggers a chain of events that could end in tragedy. A TV mini-series adapted from the novel by John le Carré.

Memories of the Wind

Özcan Alper : 2015
Rüzgârın hatıraları

World War II. Turkey is working with Nazi Germany and using similarly brutal methods against minorities and members of the opposition. For Aram, an Armenian dissident, painter and poet, life in İstanbul is growing more dangerous by the day. In the winter of 1943, he flees to the Turkish-Georgian border, where Mikhail and his young wife Mereyem give him shelter in a hut in the forest. Here, Aram waits for the papers he needs to escape to the Soviet Union. But the city-dwelling intellectual can't handle life in the woods. He's scared and feels lost in nature, with all its unexplained sounds and noises. The documents take a long time and Aram and Mereyem grow closer, making the situation for all concerned unbearable. Özcan Alper's third feature premiered in competition at Montréal World Film Festival 2015, and had its European premiere at Filmfest Hamburg 2015.

Black Horse Memories

Shahram Alidi : 2015
Bîranîna hespa reş

Aseke is a member of a group of young people who are trying to teach Kurdish in Turkish Kurdistan, a land where the teaching of the language is forbidden by Turkish authorities. Part of their work is to print clandestine schoolbooks in underground schools and distribute them. While taking part in this dangerous activity, Aseke meets her untimely death. In an attempt to fulfil her last wish – to meet Mandana, a black horse she grew up with – her friends set out to return Aseke's body to her mother. Before she is buried, though, one hears the end of the story about the great Kurdish hero, Dervishi Abdi. Aseke's friend, Zerya, finds and brings Mandana from the Anatolian mountains to where Aseke has been laid to rest. And here something surprising happens: Mandana recalls her time with Aseke; memories are seen through the mare's eyes and, poignantly, end in her tears. Shahram Alidi's second feature premiered in the New Currents section at Busan International Film Festival 2015.

Black Horse Memories – trailer (YouTube)

Dolanma

Tunç Davut : 2015
Entanglement

As seasonal forest workers, brothers Kemal and Cemal struggle with an uncertain future, living in a house inherited from their father on the outskirts of a village in the west of Turkey, by the Black Sea. Intending to begin a new life, Nalân arrives one day with Kemal and quickly adopts the house as her own. Although her presence soothes Cemal, who feels shaken by his mother's recent death, it deepens a growing rift between the two brothers. Torn between leaving and staying, Nalân opens herself up to Cemal's compassionate world. In this inevitably inextricable situation, all three sink into their own despair. Hoping to reconcile their relationship after Nalân's departure, the brothers carry on living like two strangers sharing the same house. Tunç Davut's feature debut premiered in competition at Sarajevo Film Festival 2015.

Abluka

Emin Alper : 2015
Frenzy

Kadir is released after a 15-year prison term and goes in search of his younger brother Ahmet. Meanwhile, İstanbul is in the grip of political violence. Hamza, a high-ranking police officer, helps Kadir find a job as an informant. He collects garbage, checking to see whether it contains material related to bomb-making. Ahmet works at the municipality as part of a team responsible for destroying stray dogs. When Ahmet shuts himself up in his house to care for a wounded dog, Kadir thinks he is being threatened by terrorists. Kadir relays his concern to Hamza, who sends the police to investigate. Emin Alper's feature was winner of the Special Jury Prize when it premiered in competition at Venice International Film Festival 2015.

Ana yurdu

Senem Tüzen : 2015
Motherland

Nesrin is an urban, upper middle class woman recovering from a divorce. She's quit her office job, abandoned her house in İstanbul, and come to the village house in Anatolia of her deceased grandmother to finish a novel and live out her childhood dream of being a writer. When her conservative and increasingly unhinged mother turns up uninvited and refuses to leave, Nesrin's writing stalls and her fantasies of village life turn bitter as the two are forced to confront the darker corners of each other's inner worlds. Senem Tüzen's feature directorial debut premiered in competition at Venice International Film Critics' Week 2015.

Mustang

Deniz Gamze Ergüven : 2015

Early summer. In a village in northern Turkey, Lale and her four sisters are walking home from school, playing innocently with some boys. The immorality of their play sets off a scandal that has unexpected consequences. The family home is progressively transformed into a prison, instruction in homemaking replaces school and marriages start being arranged. The five sisters who share a common passion for freedom, find ways of getting around the constraints imposed on them. Deniz Gamze Ergüven's feature debut was winner of the Europa Cinemas Label Prize when it premiered at the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs at Festival de Cannes 2015.

Deniz seviyesi

Esra Saydam & Nisan Dağ : 2014
Things I Cannot Tell

Damla, a Turkish immigrant estranged from her homeland, lives in New York City with her husband Kevin, expecting their first child. But she continues to be haunted by a secret that has prevented her from enjoying her seemingly perfect life in America. Overwhelmed to discover that her cousin is selling their childhood home, Damla returns to her homeland, where she is reintroduced to her family and her first love, Burak. Once there, she will have to confront everything she fled from eight years before. Abandoned all those years ago, the former boyfriend is aloof today, but Damla feels she still cares for him. Regardless, Damla has to find a way to confront him with a secret that she kept for years before she can move on. A highly personal, character-driven drama about a woman who is stuck between her past and present and can't let go of her first love halfway across the world. Esra Saydam and Nisan Dağ's feature debut premiered at İstanbul Film Festival 2014, and screened in competition at Titanic International Film Festival Budapest 2015.

Misafir

Mehmet Eryılmaz : 2015
The Visitor

Ten years after being thrown out of her parental home, Nur hears that her mother is at death's door. Taking her young daughter with her, Nur hurries back to her father's world to see, and reconcile with her mother before it is too late. While the universal theme of mother-daughter relationships lies at the centre of the film, this is underpinned by an allusive subtext of incest, one of most common but least addressed social problems in Turkey. The individual stories of the family members combine with a sense of hope fuelled by tragedy to paint a portrait of the socially disconnected. Mehmet Eryılmaz's second feature was selected to premiere in competition at İstanbul Film Festival 2015. The film was withdrawn by the filmmakers as part of a boycott following the censorship of the festival's national programme by Turkey's Ministry of Culture.

Gece

Erden Kıral : 2014
Night

The story of a family forced to move to the western city of İzmir upon the evacuation of their home village. Unable to adapt to their new circumstances, the father abandons the family while the elder brother Zahit ceases to care, and the family of five disintegrates. The elder sister Süsen is the most affected of all. Marrying her childhood love Yusuf, Süsen also loses her hopes of building a stable family when the burden of life gets heavier and Yusuf's personality falters. As their love subsides and they grow hopeless, they still stand together, unable to break up. Taking the western coastal city of İzmir as background, this poignant romance is a psychological drama painting a portrait of embittered people anchored to their past, struggling to stay innocently beautiful. Erden Kıral's feature screened at İstanbul Film Festival 2015.

Nefesim kesilene kadar

Emine Emel Balcı : 2015
Until I Lose My Breath

Serap, a young woman whose mother is no longer around, works in a textile factory in İstanbul. She longs for her father, a lorry driver, to finally make good on his promise and rent a flat for the two of them. In the meantime, she lives with her sister and her husband. She does everything she can to make sure her wish comes true, saving her wages for her father and allowing herself nothing. Her stubborn perseverance almost reverses the standard parent-child relationship. The daughter is the one who cares and provides, looking after her father and giving him money. She chooses to ignore the fact that he always comes up with new excuses and lies and rejects the more realistic picture that her sister paints of him. A piercing tale of a father and daughter that is also about the mixed set of feelings of longing, neediness, lies, disappointment, illusion and anger that flow together in existential human relationships. Emine Emel Balcı's feature debut premiered in the Forum section at Berlin International Film Festival 2015.

Angelus Novus

Aboozar Amini : 2015

Ali and his younger brother, together with their parents, are life-long immigrants from Afghanistan. They have just arrived in Turkey as refugees. Every day they go to school and work the rest of the day as shoe shiners on the street. Both have one dream in common: work hard to save money and go after their uncle Kakay who has not been traced since he left Turkey with the trafficker for the West. A great deal of their earnings goes towards the rent. One day they find that another kid has occupied their working spot for shoe shining. A fight breaks out and they kick the other boy badly. Since the fight, the peace and innocence of their lives as children disappears. More sadly, Ali's childhood is gone for good when he sees that the boy they kicked is a Syrian refugee and has the same destiny as them. The film's title is inspired by the notes of Walter Benjamin on the Paul Klee painting Angelus Novus – the Angel carries history but still dreams of flying forward. Neither history nor the future can take the heavy weight of daily life from the Angel's shoulders. Aboozar Amini's short premiered in the As Long As It Takes section at International Film Festival Rotterdam 2015.