EVENT 17th London Turkish Film Festival

The 17th London Turkish Film Festival will take place from 24th November – 8^th December 2011. The event, which has grown from a small three day showcase to a full-scale two week festival, promises to deliver a programme of films that will challenge, entertain and inspire. With a line-up that also includes the latest films from established directors such as Nuri Bilge Ceylan (Once Upon A Time In Anatolia); Dervis Zaim (Shadows And Faces) and Sedat Yilmaz (Press), the emphasis this year will be on emerging talent, providing an important platform for a new generation of Turkish filmmakers working both at home and abroad.

The first feature to be written and directed by actor Muzatffer Özdemir, Home (Yurt) will screen at this year's event.

Festival director Vedide Kaymak commented: “Over the last decade, Turkish filmmakers, not only in Turkey, but also those living in the rest of the world, have found new creative directions, making critically acclaimed films, and winning awards all over the world. The LTFF has always had an inclusive approach towards programming, and I am especially excited by our programme this year. We are privileged to be able to open up the new trans-cultural Turkish cinema to new audiences in venues across London.”

Gracing the red carpet for the Opening Night Gala will be legendary Italian actress Claudia Cardinale, star of classic films by Fellini, Visconti and Leone. Cardinale stars in Ali Ilhan’s first feature Being Italian With Signora Enrica, a heart warming comedy-drama about an elderly Italian woman who takes in a young Turkish exchange student.

Comedy drama, Our Grand Despair (Bizim Büyük Çaresizliğimiz) is also showing.

Other highlights of the festival include Tayfun Pirslimoglu’s Hair, which won both Best Turkish Film and Best Director at the 2011 Istanbul Film Festival; September, the first feature from photographer Cemil Agacikoglu; Do Not Forget Me Istanbul, a portrait of Istanbul as seen through the eyes of six young international directors; and Home, the first feature from actor Muzatffer Ozdemir, best known for his role in Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s Distant, for which he won the Best Actor Award at the Cannes Film Festival.

Eight films will this year be competing for the coveted Golden Wings Digiturk Digital Distribution Award, a unique £30,000 prize judged by an international panel, which enables the winning film to be released in cinemas throughout the UK and Ireland. The distinguished Jury for 2011 includes Dave Calhoun, Film Editor at Time Out London, and leading Turkish actor Mehmet Aslantug, who has been a familiar face on cinema and TV screens since1981, and is a regular participant in film festivals worldwide. This year, the 2011 Golden Wings Lifetime Achievement Award will go to “angel of Turkish Cinema” Hulya Kocyigit.

For more information on this year’s event, head to London Turkish Film Festival’s official website here.

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