Kurdish cinema brings new breath to world film sector
Güncelleme Tarihi:
by Vercihan Ziflioğlu
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Temmuz 07, 2009 00:00
ISTANBUL - Kurdish filmmakers living in various parts of the world have produced and recently released the first Kurdish cinema resource book. ’Kurdish cinema draws interest to its different themes during a period when Hollywood is reaching a dead end. There is an interest in an unknown society and culture,’ says documentary maker Müjde Aslan.
Director and screenwriter Yılmaz Güney, nicknamed "Ugly King" and whose best known film is "Yol" (The Road), is the first name that comes to mind when one thinks of Kurdish cinema in Turkey.
Güney, of Kurdish origin, moved to France after escaping prison in the wake of the 1980 coup. Later on he was stripped of his Turkish citizenship.
"Yol," written by Güney and directed by Şerif Gören, shared the Golden Palm Award with Greek director Costa Gavras’ "Missing" at the 1982 Cannes Film Festival. It was a personal success for Güney because it was almost impossible to talk about Kurdish cinema in this period. Then in the 1990s young Kurdish directors living in various parts of the world started making their first movies.
Golden Camera for ’A Time for Drunken Horses’
Because of the Kurdish problem in Turkey during this period, the Kurdish public and its culture became popular around the world. Iranian director of Kurdish origin Bahman Ghobadi won the Golden Camera Award at the Cannes Film Festival in 2000 for his film "Dema Herspen Serxwes" (A Time for Drunken Horses), which centered on a Kurdish family’s drama. This award offered hope for young Kurdish filmmakers, and they started producing new films one after another.
But financial problems posed the biggest hurdle. This problem led these filmmakers to initiate a common project. They got in contact with people living in various parts of the world and gathered documents for their films and projects. And the result was a book called "Yurtsuzluk, Sınır ve Ölüm" (Rootlessness, Border and Death) that was compiled by documentary maker Müjde Aslan and recently released by Agora Publishing House.
The book will also be published soon in Kurdish and English.
Kurdish cinema and identity
Aslan and Devrim Kılıç, who is living in the Australian city of Melbourne and contributed research for the book, spoke to the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review about Kurdish cinema. Stating that it was impossible to talk about Kurdish cinema until the 21st century, Aslan said: "The Kurdish public is a different one that lives in various parts of the world and seeks their identity. Of course there are Kurdish directors making films in different countries, but like in the Yılmaz Güney example, directors are nourished by the culture of the country where they live. Therefore it is impossible to talk about a rooted Kurdish cinema."
Even though Kurdish cinema is known to have been initiated by the film "Zare" in 1926, Aslan said it was not true. "Armenian origin director Hamo Bek-Nazarov shot 'Zare' with the help of Kurdish tribes. Yes, the team was Kurdish, but the director was Armenian. But there is also a detail that should be remembered. Kurds could have never been as free as they were in Russia or Armenia. This film is the evidence of this fact."
Kılıç said Kurdish cinema received too much interest in recent years, adding that the reason was the Kurdish problem in Turkey. "Kurdish society doesn’t have a cinema culture," Kılıç said. "Kurds started making films while everyone was discussing whether cinema is a branch of art. The public’s interest is almost nonexistent."
Kurdish cinema and themes
Kılıç said Kurdish films were generally set in rural areas. "In these films, Kurds are portrayed as villagers, illiterate and barbaric. I have never seen Kurds portrayed in a different way. Güney’s films are the same; they are full of pain, and so are Ghobadin’s films. Ghobadi gives the following answer when one asks him the reason: ’Kurds remind me only of snow, war, mountains, mine and wire fences."
Born in Mardin, Aslan agrees with Kılıç, and said: "Kurds preserve their identity in villages the most. They are assimilated in cities. My latest film ’A Fatal Dress: Polygamy’ is based on my personal story. I have questioned my own relations. Kurdish cinema has an introverted style."
Kurdish cinema is like a child
Aslan said their projected aimed to encourage young Kurdish directors. "Kurdish cinema is like a child who has just started speaking," she said. "But it is unique and introverted."
Talking about the world’s interest in Kurdish cinema, Aslan said, "Kurdish cinema draws interest to its different themes during a period when Hollywood is reaching a dead end. There is an interest in an unknown culture. Kurdish directors and foreign ones are making films about Kurdish society."
Güney, of Kurdish origin, moved to France after escaping prison in the wake of the 1980 coup. Later on he was stripped of his Turkish citizenship.
"Yol," written by Güney and directed by Şerif Gören, shared the Golden Palm Award with Greek director Costa Gavras’ "Missing" at the 1982 Cannes Film Festival. It was a personal success for Güney because it was almost impossible to talk about Kurdish cinema in this period. Then in the 1990s young Kurdish directors living in various parts of the world started making their first movies.
Golden Camera for ’A Time for Drunken Horses’
Because of the Kurdish problem in Turkey during this period, the Kurdish public and its culture became popular around the world. Iranian director of Kurdish origin Bahman Ghobadi won the Golden Camera Award at the Cannes Film Festival in 2000 for his film "Dema Herspen Serxwes" (A Time for Drunken Horses), which centered on a Kurdish family’s drama. This award offered hope for young Kurdish filmmakers, and they started producing new films one after another.
But financial problems posed the biggest hurdle. This problem led these filmmakers to initiate a common project. They got in contact with people living in various parts of the world and gathered documents for their films and projects. And the result was a book called "Yurtsuzluk, Sınır ve Ölüm" (Rootlessness, Border and Death) that was compiled by documentary maker Müjde Aslan and recently released by Agora Publishing House.
The book will also be published soon in Kurdish and English.
Kurdish cinema and identity
Aslan and Devrim Kılıç, who is living in the Australian city of Melbourne and contributed research for the book, spoke to the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review about Kurdish cinema. Stating that it was impossible to talk about Kurdish cinema until the 21st century, Aslan said: "The Kurdish public is a different one that lives in various parts of the world and seeks their identity. Of course there are Kurdish directors making films in different countries, but like in the Yılmaz Güney example, directors are nourished by the culture of the country where they live. Therefore it is impossible to talk about a rooted Kurdish cinema."
Even though Kurdish cinema is known to have been initiated by the film "Zare" in 1926, Aslan said it was not true. "Armenian origin director Hamo Bek-Nazarov shot 'Zare' with the help of Kurdish tribes. Yes, the team was Kurdish, but the director was Armenian. But there is also a detail that should be remembered. Kurds could have never been as free as they were in Russia or Armenia. This film is the evidence of this fact."
Kılıç said Kurdish cinema received too much interest in recent years, adding that the reason was the Kurdish problem in Turkey. "Kurdish society doesn’t have a cinema culture," Kılıç said. "Kurds started making films while everyone was discussing whether cinema is a branch of art. The public’s interest is almost nonexistent."
Kurdish cinema and themes
Kılıç said Kurdish films were generally set in rural areas. "In these films, Kurds are portrayed as villagers, illiterate and barbaric. I have never seen Kurds portrayed in a different way. Güney’s films are the same; they are full of pain, and so are Ghobadin’s films. Ghobadi gives the following answer when one asks him the reason: ’Kurds remind me only of snow, war, mountains, mine and wire fences."
Born in Mardin, Aslan agrees with Kılıç, and said: "Kurds preserve their identity in villages the most. They are assimilated in cities. My latest film ’A Fatal Dress: Polygamy’ is based on my personal story. I have questioned my own relations. Kurdish cinema has an introverted style."
Kurdish cinema is like a child
Aslan said their projected aimed to encourage young Kurdish directors. "Kurdish cinema is like a child who has just started speaking," she said. "But it is unique and introverted."
Talking about the world’s interest in Kurdish cinema, Aslan said, "Kurdish cinema draws interest to its different themes during a period when Hollywood is reaching a dead end. There is an interest in an unknown culture. Kurdish directors and foreign ones are making films about Kurdish society."