Festival talk with Ümit Ünal
A festival talk was held with the participation of director, author, screenwriter and the President of National Competition Jury Ümit Ünal. The director who’ve made hit films such as 9, Ara, Gölgesizler, Ses, Nar / Pomegranate, and Sofra Sırları / Serial Cook talked about how lucky he was to work as a screenwriter during the later years of Yeşilçam. “When I was studying film in Izmir, we were given an assignment to write a script. I was moved by my aunt’s life story, so I tried to turn it into a screenplay. There was no one I knew in Istanbul, but I was saying “I will go to Istanbul and Müjde Ar will star in my film.” Everyone in the school was laughing at me. Back then writing wasn’t considered important in Yeşilçam, it was like running away to join the circus. However, writing a screenplay for Müjde has changed my life.”
Ümit Ünal, who started working in Yeşilçam as a screenwriter in 1986 with Teyzem (My Aunt) directed by Halit Refiğ, made his directorial debut 9 in 2001. The film, which is about a murder investigation and takes place in a single location, received the Best Turkish Film Award from the Istanbul Film Festival, and in addition to traveling to many international festivals it was also Turkey’s Oscar entry. About the initial idea for his film 9, the director said: “When we used to film in 35mm, a feature-length consisted of 25 boxes of film. There were directors who could make films with 40 boxes of film. There was a habit of making films economically in those days. Atıf Yılmaz used to work like that. He would only shoot the most necessary sequences and plan everything meticulously. I’ve learned a lot from those directors and that’s how I work, too. You spend the most amount of money for the location, and the most amount of time when you change locations. I thought whether I could make a film under one light and takes place in a single location. That’s how I came up with the murder investigation story.”
The director said that he believes in artistic sensibility rather than artistic responsibility and emphasised that it’s very important for artist to listen to their inner voices. He added that every artist sees the world differently than the majority and said, “It’s actually a kind of a short circuit in the brain.” Ünal expressed that every artwork is created by an artist first and then recreated by the audience, listener or reader and likened it to a message in a bottle: “Everyone will have their own opinion about your work through their own perception. So, at some point you have to forget about the audience.”
Story of a shattered marriage: One Day
Featured in the No More Flowers section, One Day is the feature debut of Zsófia Szilágyi. The film which received the FIPRESCI Award at Cannes depicts the alienating effect of work, marriage and parenting on thirty-something Anna. Lead actress of the film Zsófia Szamosi answered audience questions following the screening at Cinemaximum City’s Nişantaşı.
Does the director have a child? I’m curious about where she found the motivation.
Zsófia Szamosi: Yes, she does. During the filming process I didn’t have a child myself. But, it wasn’t the first mother role I’ve played, I might add. However, I think as artists we should be ready for unfamiliar circumstances.
Hungary is a country that has experienced socialism. Would the character of Anna face the same quandary in the socialist regime or does it only apply to today’s Hungary?
Z.S.: I was a child during the socialist era. I don’t have experiences that pertain to that era. I think her quandary is specific to today’s Hungary. The fact that two well-educated people earn so little and can’t overcome the hardships they go through is the truth of Hungary today. Our Western European friends get angry saying that how come a lawyer and a language teacher can’t make money, but that’s the reality of Central Europe. A language teacher and a lawyer hardly make ends meet.
Relating the state of refugees through comedy: Adopt a Daddy
Melisa Sözen and Franck Gastambide star in Adopt a Daddy which takes an entertaining look at what refugees go through in France, even if they are children. Following the screening at the Beyoğlu Film Theatre, director Xavier de Choudens and Melisa Sözen answered audience questions.
First of all, how did you find each other? Melisa Sözen is a very famous and impressive actress. How did this meeting happen?
Xavier de Choudens: We were introduced by our casting agent, actually. I especially wasn’t looking for an actress well-known in France. I thought that would take time, but our casting director introduced Melisa to me. We made the deal in a week. It was like when a door opens, and you see the light.
Melisa Sözen: It was also very exciting for me when I received the first pages of the script. Since I don’t know any French, I immediately started memorizing my lines with my French language teacher. We had a great casting director. We worked on the scenes together. I sent them to Xavier then I went to France and everything worked out perfectly.
In Turkey, we are familiar with Melisa Sözen’s acting, but how was it conveying emotions so beautifully in a different language?
M.S.: Normally there’s so much going on a set, so you are constantly distracted. However, on this set I was able to concentrate on my role completely because I had no idea about what was going on. That was very useful for me. Aside from that, a different language evokes different feelings since the body is not as used to those sounds. What I mean is, I speak Turkish right now and since I’m familiar with the language the body language that accompanies it comes to me naturally. In a different language you open a new door. I developed a new body language, a new set of gestures, a new way of thinking and I loved that experience very much.
X.C.: It was also a very interesting experience for me, because my English is not very good. So, we had to communicate through a limited vocabulary. Therefore, it can be very tiring trying to constantly explain things with words. Turns out sometimes it’s easier to communicate through the eyes.
Do you think the French public understood the message you wanted to give in the film?
X.C.: Actually, yes. Especially young people are enlightened about the issue. On the other hand, it seems like the refugee problem is not taken very seriously in France. I mean, they were very moved by the film, but the audience focused more on Selma’s life and the film in general as opposed to the political messages in the film.
Screenings continue at the National Competition and National Documentary Competition
National Competition entry Passed by Censor tells the story of Zakir who works as a prison letter examiner. A Q&A session was held at the Atlas Film Theatre with the participation of director Serhat Karaaslan and the film’s crew following the screening.
Emin Alper’s National Competition entry A Tale of Three Sisters screened at the Atlas Film Theatre with the participation of the director and film’s crew. The film is about the rivalry between three sisters about who will be sent to a family in town to become a besleme (a foster child who works as a maid).
Aether, which competes in both the National Competition and National Documentary Competition, is about a town which will soon be submerged by a dam. The film screened at the Pera Museum Auditorium with the participation of director Rûken Tekeş.
Directed by Aylin Kuryel and Fırat Yücel, Heads and Tails about the human hair trade between Turkey and Israel, and Orhan Tekeoğlu’s Time to Leave, about a dramatic father and son story were also screened at the National Documentary Competition.
Today at the festival | Panel Discussion: What’s a Good Festival Anyway?
In the audiovisual universe, viewing and exhibition practices, forms, and perceptions have swiftly changed and are changing due to technological advances, the Internet, data storage and transfer. This transformation has affected all parties in the film industry including the viewers. Then, how has this transformation process in production and distribution influences film festivals? What future awaits the festivals? An advisor to the festival, film critic Engin Ertan will moderate the discussion along these issues, keeping in mind and trying to answer “what’s a good festival, anyway” together with Anna Hoffmann, Berlinale Forum programme manager and a juror at the festival; Berlinale European Film Market director Matthijs Wouter Knol, also a juror; Istanbul Film Festival director Kerem Ayan and Meetings on the Bridge head Gülin Üstün.
Sunday, 14 April, 14.00, Free Admission
Yapı Kredi Culture Centre, İstiklal Cd. No: 161, Beyoğlu
Tomorrow at the festival | Festival Talk: Andreas Sinanos
A jury member of the National Competition this year, Andreas Sinanos has worked with many esteemed directors including Özcan Alper, Semih Kaplanoğlu, Tayfun Pirselimoğlu from Turkey; Vassiliki Iliopoulou, Yiannis Diamantopoulos, Christos Vacalopoulos, Nikos Cornelios, and Lefteris Xanthopoulos from Greece, and foremost with Theo Angelopoulos in eight of his films as director of photography. At this festival chat, Sinanos, together with academic and writer Aslı Selçuk, share his views on his art, tips on cinematography and his relation with the great master Angelopoulos.
Monday, 15 April, 16.00, Free Admission
Yapı Kredi Culture Centre, İstiklal Cd. No: 161, Beyoğlu
Daily Film Selection:
House of Hummingbird | 16.00 | Cinemaximum City’s Nişantaşı
The White Crow | 21.30 | Cinemaximum Zorlu Center
Daily Documentary Selection:
El Pepe A Supreme Life | 11.00 | Cinemaximum City’s Nişantaşı
Gulyabani | 16.00 | Pera Museum Auditorium
Clouds | 16.00 | Pera Museum Auditorium
Festival in Photos
See daily photos from the festival at http://www.iksvphoto.com/#/folder/aa602o and on our Instagram account.
Images courtesy of IKSV.
