Ezel Akay

Remake, Remix, Rip-Off: About Copy Culture & Turkish Pop Cinema

Turkey in the 1960s and 1970s was one of the biggest producers of film in the world. In order to keep up with the demand, screenwriters and directors were copying scripts and remaking movies from all over the world. This documentary visits the fastest working directors, the most practical cameramen and the most hardheaded actors to have a closer look into the country's tumultuous history of movie making.

The Lord of the Seagull

The Lord of the Seagull (MEF) is a man living a calm life on the seashore in Istanbul. There is someone he has been waiting for years. Finally the guest he waits will come out. In white, a woman who shoots on the shore like a tale will change the whole life of the MEF.

Beginner

Retired taxi driver Faruk is still working into his 60s. Having lost his wife ten years earlier, he leads a monotonous life. His only wish is to learn English, for which he is sometimes ridiculed and sometimes appreciated. His life will change a lot as he meets people throughout that difficult process, as learning a new language brings new experiences.

July 14

Turkey, after the 1980 military coup. In the notorious Diyarbakır prison, the prisoners decide to resist the torture. 14 July 1982 is the day when the biggest resistance starts.

Rimo and Zimo Peace In Town

Rimo and Zimo are two towns that are not very far from each other, divided by a small desert. Both towns’ people have stayed away from each other for a long time, feeling mutual hatred and fear. One day, two little rascals from Rimo, Bızdık and Minnik, decide to go to the desert for an adventure. Meanwhile, the Zimo Family enjoys a family picnic at the desert with their baby egg and little daughter.

F Tipi Film

Nine stories of resistance against solitary confinement of political prisoners in Turkey.

Hicran Sokağı

A neighborhood story with loves and fights.

Flirting with Danger

A failing band plans a bank robbery in order to make it big with a record deal.

7 Husbands for Hurmuz

Remake of a well-known Turkish musical comedy loved by generations, the film is about the adventures of flirtatious Hurmuz in late 1800's Istanbul. Hurmuz who lives in Taskasap, Istanbul has six husbands in a plot to solve her economic problems. She arranges to meet each of her husbands one day of the week. However, suddenly, she falls in love with the town's doctor whom she meets at her husband's barber shop. The doctor falls in love with her too... But, one night all six husbands come home at the same time, and Hurmuz and Safinaz - Hurmuz's "go-between/accomplice/friend" - find themselves in a series of very awkward yet funny situations.

Adam and the Devil

Imam Hasan, his wife Hacer and his daughter Fatma arrive at Karaağaçlı, a small railway town in the middle of the Anatolian wilderness. Besides carrying out the duties of the imam, Hasan will be teaching religion to the children of the town during the holy month of Ramadan. His unusual behavior towards his wife and little daughter arrests the attention of the townsfolk. Meanwhile Adem, the son of the stationmaster who is crazy for trains begins to learn about and get into a world he has never heard of before in the lessons given by Hasan: trains, sin, good deeds, heaven and hell.. everything gets jumbled. Condemned of being harsh and merciless towards his family, Hasan one day finds himself obliged to reveal the "secret" about himself and his family and this changes everything in the eyes of people. Yet there has remained another secret of which anyone, even Hasan is hardly aware. The people of the town, including Adem, will remember this Ramadan throughout their lives.

Killing the Shadows

Killing The Shadows is a bawdy comic fable set in the Ottoman Empire during the mid-14th century based on two legendary figures in Turkish folkore, the jester Hacivat (Beyazit Ozturk) and the nomad Karagoz (Haluk Bilginer), men who apparently lived and died by their sense of humour.

The Net 2.0

The life of a young computer systems analyst is thrown into turmoil after arriving in Istanbul to start a new job. She soon finds her passport missing, her credit cards useless, her bank account empty and her identity stolen. As the story progresses we find people and events may not be what they seem.

Robbery Alla Turca

With the death of a billionaire engaged in illegal practices, his billion-dollar fortune is up for the grabs. As his art collection is being prepared to be sold at an auction, two Turkish thieves from Germany are hired to steal valuable paintings from the art collection. Meanwhile, Seckin the fashioner designer - also the brother of Binnur, wife of the late billionaire - prepares for a fashion show in the same hotel that the robbery is going to take place. With the intervention of police, the beautiful model and her ex-lover, a hip papparazi, the two "Laz" mafia bosses seeking revenge, and the getaway driver straight out of Selcuk Erdem caricatures, the robbery is bound to go wrong. Prepare for a twist at the end as the plot unfolds towards a climactic ending...

Where's Firuze?

Hayri and Orhan are two music producers head over heels in debt. In an attempt to find the next big thing to turn the business around, they contact Ferhat, a gastarbeiter in Germany, and desperately bring him to Istanbul to sign him. As they are struggling to find the necessary funds to promote Ferhat's debut album, a mysterious rich woman named Firuze shows up and starts supporting them. The future now seems bright, but things are not always what they seem...

The Waterfall

The story takes place in Harbiye town of Antakya just before the 1960 military coup d'etat. The economic and political crisis of those days are reflected by the both funny and sad story of a family. The story is told from the eyes of Cemal. Now a famous painter, Cemal goes back to his hometown years later and remembers his childhood. In those days Cemal's father and uncle, member of rival political parties, are in a continious struggle with each other. The film depicts this absurd struggle and the strange stories of people in Harbiye together with the lyric story of the famous waterfall of the town.

Elephants and Grass

Elephants and Grass (Turkish: Filler ve Çimen) is a 2001 Turkish drama film, written and directed by Derviş Zaim, about six different stories that merge into a common theme. The film, which went on nationwide general release across Turkey on January 5, 2001, won awards at film festivals in Antalya and Istanbul, including the Golden Orange Behlül Dal Jury Special Award.