Turkish film festival offers cinematic gems
As it continues to bring the best of international “art house” cinema, foreign language films and film festivals to South African audiences, Ster-Kinekor Cinema Nouveau is proud to announce the screening of the second Turkish Film Festival in South Africa.
ROSEBANK – The festival will be screened at the Rosebank Cinema Nouveau in The Mall, Rosebank, in Johannesburg, from September 20 to 21. All the screenings will be free to the public. Tickets can be collected at the participating cinema box-offices before each film is shown.
The Turkish Film Festival is made possible by the Turkish Embassy in Pretoria, with the support of the Turkish Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Culture and Tourism, in collaboration with Ster-Kinekor Cinema Nouveau. The festival offers cinema-lovers the opportunity to explore contemporary Turkish cinema, with the screening of recent internationally-awarded films and box-office successes.
The festival opens with Vavien, a black comedy that tells the story of a family living in a small town. Each family member has something to hide from the others. But, through symmetrical depictions, all the family secrets are revealed.
The festival continues with a drama entitled The Butterfly’s Dream, written and directed by Yilmaz Erdoğan, which was the official submission from Turkey into this year’s Best Foreign Language Film category for the 86th Academy Awards.
The Butterfly’s Dream centres on two young poets, Rüştü Onur and Muzaffer Tayyip Uslu, during the 1940s of Turkey. They make a bet on a pretty girl, whoever’s poem the girl likes will win, while the other must step aside. The poets however have to deal with other everyday problems such as disease (they both suffer from tuberculosis), poverty and compulsory work in the mines as World War II rages across Europe. As the story unfolds, the poets travel between cities and events in search of happiness. Is it the optimist or the pessimist who is the bravest?
Distant, which won 17 awards including the Grand Prix and Best Actor Award at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival, focuses on the relationship between Yusuf, jobless and unsophisticated, and Mahmut, a wealthy and intellectual photographer. The film addresses issues such as the social divide, cultural differences and prejudices in a sensitive manner.
In Magic Carpet Ride, the box-office success comedy, Asim Noyan and his gang make up a rambling collective, which concerns itself with a range of criminal activities, from car theft to fraud. An inveterate womaniser, Asim meets the failed comedian Samet, a Superman impersonator. In an act of desperation, Samet finds himself unwittingly implicated in the dealings of the gang.
The festival closes with another drama, Everything About Mustafa. This film follows several days in the life of a man who has lost his wife in a rather surprising manner, and a lot more. The film examines the entire life of Mustafa through a series of flashbacks.
With a variety of genres and award-winning titles being screened, the second Turkish Film Festival presents the best of Turkish cinema in South Africa. Ster-Kinekor Cinema Nouveau is delighted to be associated once again with this exciting festival presenting the best of Turkish cinema.
For more information on the second Turkish Film Festival, please visit: For booking information, visit www.cinemanouveau.co.za or sterkinekor.mobi, or call our Ticketline on 0861-Movies (668 437). Follow us on Twitter @nouveaubuzz and on Facebook at Cinema Nouveau. You can also download the Ster-Kinekor App on any Nokia, Samsung Android, iPhone and Blackberry smart phone to download the latest updates and news, and to book tickets from your handse
