World Cinema Report: Turkey (December 2008)

[Editor’s note: Along with the site revamp, one item I’m looking forward to introducing in 09’ is our various monthly “World Reports”.] 

Turkey Film Scene: Local

With the closing out of the 2008 calendar year, Turkish cinema is still raking in some major box office profits with local mainstream and independent productions fairing just as well as foreign Hollywood fair.
 
As of late, Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s Cannes winning Three Monkeys and the country’s Oscar-short list film has performed well since its October release and the next big title in Reha Erdem’s My Only Sunshine will be coming out some time soon. The film has screened in many film fests.

Currently, Semih Kaplanoğlu, the director who presented Süt in the Visions section at TIFF is working on the Cannes’ Atelier de la Cinefondation supported Milk, while Zeki Demirkubuz’s latest is in production.

Box office tallies have been solid for Turkish cinema in the past month, especially in last week’s national 9-day holiday of bayram in Turkey. The first four films were national products with A.R.O.G. grabbing the top spot in 329 screens with ($2.5m from 329).

A.R.O.G: 2.611.425 
MURO: 1.528.273 
ISSIZ ADAM: 1.282.852 
OSMANLI CUMHURİYETİ: 1.270.935

A.R.O.G, which was based on a Turkish character sent to the ice age, also happens to be a big budget film – the approximate 9 million dollar project is the highest budgeted film to be made in Turkish movie industry so far. Cem Yılmaz, who wrote and plays the lead character, is the most famous comedian of Turkey and A.R.O.G is the continuation of G.O.R.A – a sci-fi comedy about the same character who is kidnapped by the aliens. AROG is expected to break the box office record of Turkey in the following weeks. Here is the film’s trailer:…   

Muro, which is the continuation of a character named Muro, from a rating-winner TV series. Muro is a revolutionist character and the film is about his and his fellows’ adventures about mounting a revolution. The film is criticized by some for being too “leftwing”, yet this hasn’t affected its box office results.

Issız Adam, on the other hand is an inventive love story from the director Çağan Irmak. He is well known for his My Father and My Son which was one of the most watched films of Turkey without any marketing to support it. This film is also criticized of being deliberately histrionic, however, it is common for a Irmak’s films to be adored and criticized at the same time.

Coming in fourth film in Turkey box office, Osmanlı Cumhuriyeti which can be translated as “Republic of Ottomans” is based on a fictional storyline. The film begins with the childhood of Ataturk (1881-1938), the founder of Turkish Republic. And it asks the question that is commonly asked today: what would happen if there were no Ataturk at all. The answer is told in a humorous way and the film adapts today’s Turkey in a dis-Utopian way.

Turkey Film Scene: International

Ozcan Alper’s Autumn was showcased at the 12th Black Nights Film Festival EurAsia Competition where it competed against 18 films for the Grand Prix prize. 

The just announced CineMart (Rotterdam film festival’s co-production market) has included a homegrown product. Among the 35 titles, we find Zephyr from filmmaker Belma Bas (Filmik Productions).

Onur Ertugrul is a film reporter and editor-in-chief for Bakiniz.com