And now the awards will go to Turkish films
Güncelleme Tarihi:
by Emrah Güler
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Şubat 14, 2009 00:00
ISTANBUL - The awards season throughout the world finds its voice in Turkey as well. The coming weeks will feature Turkish movies competing in the Film Critics Association (SİYAD) and Yeşilçam awards. Oh, and the sexist and macho films will receive their Golden Okras
It’s that time of the year when we see the directors, actors and producers of last year’s successful movies, all dressed up, hopping from one award show to another, accepting awards, hopefully, with humility and humor.
It’s that time of the year when anticipation begins for movies we didn’t even know existed just a couple weeks ago. We now know how Kate Winslet cries, how Winslet’s husband director Sam Mendes suppresses jealousy and how "Slumdog Millionaire" director Danny Boyle practices humility in front of crowds.
Although Turkey’s answer to the Oscars, the Golden Orange awards, takes place in autumn, we have our share of movie awards to match with the international ones in the awards season. The nominees for two prestigious awards, the Turkish Film Critics Association (SİYAD) and Yeşilçam, have been announced recently, with the awards to be handed out in the coming weeks.
The SİYAD awards are infamous for feeding controversy into the Turkish media always hungry for the slightest chance of a polemic. Last year, the first film in the Yusuf’s Trilogy by director Semih Kaplanoğlu, "Yumurta" (Egg), swept eight of the 11 awards, rubbing out two other award-winning movies, "Mutluluk" (Bliss) and "Adem’in Trenleri," from major awards.
This stirred quite a controversy when some of the columnists accused SİYAD of overlooking popular movies in favor of art house films. The controversy was unsubstantiated as it’s a matter of mathematics to determine the awards. The members of SİYAD, however, were more cautious this year as the second in Yusuf’s Trilogy, "Süt" (Milk), was nowhere to be seen among the nominees. Standup comedian, actor, director Cem Yılmaz’s popular comedy "A.R.O.G: Bir Yontmataş Filmi" (A.R.O.G: A Stone Age Film), on the other hand, garnered four nominations, including one for its actor, Yılmaz.
The list of nominees showcased a fair distribution, recognizing previous awards, critical acclaim, as well as box office success. Best Picture nominees included Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s Cannes success "Üç Maymun" (Three Monkeys), veteran writer Ümit Ünal’s brave take on relationships among middle-class in Istanbul with "Ara" (Between), Tayfun Pirselimoğlu’s "Rıza" that was unfortunate in finding the right release date, film critic Seyfi Teoman’s directorial debut "Tatil Kitabı" (Summer Book), and Özcan Alper’s inspiring debut "Sonbahar" (Autumn). The SİYAD awards will be handed out Feb. 22, the same day as the Oscars.
Popular films
About a week after the SİYAD awards, another award ceremony will recognize last year’s Turkish movies on March 3. Yeşilçam awards are given jointly by Istanbul Beyoğlu Municipality and the Turkish Foundation of Cinema and Audio-visual Culture (TÜRSAK). Yeşilçam is the name of a street in Istanbul’s Beyoğlu district, the equivalent of Hollywood in Turkish cinema where the movie industry was shaped in the early 1900s.
The Yeşilçam awards fall somewhere between industry awards and the people’s choice awards. Hundreds of jury members are set by the members of cinema associations and active cinema professionals (including your humble writer). When you look at the list of nominees, you will see more popular movies next to award-winners, and the low-budget art house movies revered by some of the critics missing from the list.
Best Film category includes only two names from SİYAD’s list, "Üç Maymun" and "Sonbahar," the mutually exclusive films adding to their prestige when the awards season is over. The other films are Yılmaz’s "A.R.O.G: Bir Yontmataş Filmi," Çağan Irmak’s tear-jerker "Issız Adam" (Deserted Man), and documentary director Tolga Örnek’s debut feature "Devrim Arabaları" (The Revolution Cars).
Awarding the sexist and the macho
April will see the first of a new and quite original award ceremony, given in only four categories, the Golden Okra. Okra is used in Turkish as a derogatory term for manhood, referring to a certain body part. And the Okra awards will be given to the most sexist, discriminating and macho film, script, and male and female characters of last year.
The three films that reinforced antiquated stereotypes on sexes, portrayed men in their comfortable macho habitats, and confined women to one-dimensional traditional roles are "Issız Adam," the tasteless comedy "Recep İvedik," and "Aşk Tutulması" (The Love Eclipse). Don’t expect the nominees to show up when the Golden Okras are handed by the gutsy women of the Filmmor Women’s Festival.
It’s that time of the year when anticipation begins for movies we didn’t even know existed just a couple weeks ago. We now know how Kate Winslet cries, how Winslet’s husband director Sam Mendes suppresses jealousy and how "Slumdog Millionaire" director Danny Boyle practices humility in front of crowds.
Although Turkey’s answer to the Oscars, the Golden Orange awards, takes place in autumn, we have our share of movie awards to match with the international ones in the awards season. The nominees for two prestigious awards, the Turkish Film Critics Association (SİYAD) and Yeşilçam, have been announced recently, with the awards to be handed out in the coming weeks.
The SİYAD awards are infamous for feeding controversy into the Turkish media always hungry for the slightest chance of a polemic. Last year, the first film in the Yusuf’s Trilogy by director Semih Kaplanoğlu, "Yumurta" (Egg), swept eight of the 11 awards, rubbing out two other award-winning movies, "Mutluluk" (Bliss) and "Adem’in Trenleri," from major awards.
This stirred quite a controversy when some of the columnists accused SİYAD of overlooking popular movies in favor of art house films. The controversy was unsubstantiated as it’s a matter of mathematics to determine the awards. The members of SİYAD, however, were more cautious this year as the second in Yusuf’s Trilogy, "Süt" (Milk), was nowhere to be seen among the nominees. Standup comedian, actor, director Cem Yılmaz’s popular comedy "A.R.O.G: Bir Yontmataş Filmi" (A.R.O.G: A Stone Age Film), on the other hand, garnered four nominations, including one for its actor, Yılmaz.
The list of nominees showcased a fair distribution, recognizing previous awards, critical acclaim, as well as box office success. Best Picture nominees included Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s Cannes success "Üç Maymun" (Three Monkeys), veteran writer Ümit Ünal’s brave take on relationships among middle-class in Istanbul with "Ara" (Between), Tayfun Pirselimoğlu’s "Rıza" that was unfortunate in finding the right release date, film critic Seyfi Teoman’s directorial debut "Tatil Kitabı" (Summer Book), and Özcan Alper’s inspiring debut "Sonbahar" (Autumn). The SİYAD awards will be handed out Feb. 22, the same day as the Oscars.
Popular films
About a week after the SİYAD awards, another award ceremony will recognize last year’s Turkish movies on March 3. Yeşilçam awards are given jointly by Istanbul Beyoğlu Municipality and the Turkish Foundation of Cinema and Audio-visual Culture (TÜRSAK). Yeşilçam is the name of a street in Istanbul’s Beyoğlu district, the equivalent of Hollywood in Turkish cinema where the movie industry was shaped in the early 1900s.
The Yeşilçam awards fall somewhere between industry awards and the people’s choice awards. Hundreds of jury members are set by the members of cinema associations and active cinema professionals (including your humble writer). When you look at the list of nominees, you will see more popular movies next to award-winners, and the low-budget art house movies revered by some of the critics missing from the list.
Best Film category includes only two names from SİYAD’s list, "Üç Maymun" and "Sonbahar," the mutually exclusive films adding to their prestige when the awards season is over. The other films are Yılmaz’s "A.R.O.G: Bir Yontmataş Filmi," Çağan Irmak’s tear-jerker "Issız Adam" (Deserted Man), and documentary director Tolga Örnek’s debut feature "Devrim Arabaları" (The Revolution Cars).
Awarding the sexist and the macho
April will see the first of a new and quite original award ceremony, given in only four categories, the Golden Okra. Okra is used in Turkish as a derogatory term for manhood, referring to a certain body part. And the Okra awards will be given to the most sexist, discriminating and macho film, script, and male and female characters of last year.
The three films that reinforced antiquated stereotypes on sexes, portrayed men in their comfortable macho habitats, and confined women to one-dimensional traditional roles are "Issız Adam," the tasteless comedy "Recep İvedik," and "Aşk Tutulması" (The Love Eclipse). Don’t expect the nominees to show up when the Golden Okras are handed by the gutsy women of the Filmmor Women’s Festival.