In this section you can find articles, interviews and conversations from the library of Altyazı Fasikül: Free Cinema, translated into English. They reflect the stories of people and places, as well as the struggles of collectives from the recent history of filmmaking in Turkey. You can also watch the short films in From Below and Looking Outside series with English subtitles.

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Osman Kavala series by TRT: Smear campaign

Smear campaign against human rights advocate Osman Kavala advertised as TV series: Metamorfoz, broadcast at Turkish Radio and Television’s digital platform tabii, has released its second episode after a long pause.

The Story Behind A Poster: A Film That Was Never Made

Two filmmakers from Turkey, Çiğdem Mater and Mine Özerden, have been held in Bakırköy Prison in Istanbul, for more than a year.
This video tells the story behind the poster: “A Film That Was Never Made” resulted in an 18 year prison sentence.

The Jina Revolution Through the Eyes of Iranian Artists Living Abroad

The Association of Iranian Film and Theatre Artists Abroad (AIFTAA) offers support across borders to women who are “rooted underground” in Iran. We talked with filmmaker/artist Mania Akbari and playwriter and director Niloofar Beyzaie from the association, which tries to make the voice of the “Women, Life, Freedom” movement heard all over the world.

In the Aftermath of the Earthquakes

Filmmakers in solidarity, documentarists in the field despite censorship and attacks, destroyed movie theaters, media’s ‘charity washing’ and counter-videos… This edition of our monthly newsletter focuses on the aftermath of the earthquakes in Turkey.

Mania Akbari Tells Her Own Story

In her letter addressed to MK2, Mania Akbari was accusing Abbas Kiarostami not only with plagiarism but also with sexual assault. We contacted Akbari to listen to her story in all its details.

Heleen Gerritsen: Eastern European Cinema and The Western Gaze

One of the guests of 14. Documentarist – Istanbul Documentary Days was Heleen Gerritsen, the…

Shaghayegh Norouzi: Iranian #MeToo Is Stronger Than Ever

Male dominance in the Iranian film industry is crumbling since women started to publicise their…

Culture in Crisis: The Case of the Cinemateca Brasileira

Cinephiles around the globe have been deeply concerned about and reacting against the closing of…

Looking Outside: The Echoing Presence of the Silenced

The author gives an overview of the short documentaries in the ‘Looking Outside’ series, reflecting on the notions of inside vs. outside, remembering vs. forgetting. The shorts were commissioned by Altyazı Fasikül: Free Cinema during the first lockdown.

Free Cinema Agenda 2020, Turkey

Free Cinema Agenda video features some of the key events that had an impact on…

Mesopotamia Cultural Center (MKM): The Will to Produce in One’s Native Language

Many filmmakers active in the independent cinema of Turkey today met in the courses organized…

Oktay İnce: The Images Belong to Those Who are Recorded

Oktay İnce is a moving image activist, an image worker. He has been involved in…

The Voice of #SusmaBitsin [Speak up to End]

On November 4, 2018, a group of women film professionals initiated the #SusmaBitsin (Speak up…

The Memory of Batman: Yılmaz Güney Movie Theater

Dicle Anter (the son of Musa Anter, a prominent Kurdish writer who was murdered in…

Looking Outside – Short Films from Turkey Made During the Pandemic

Altyazı Cinema Magazine’s supplement Altyazı Fasikül: Free Cinema invited independent filmmakers in Turkey to make…

Free Cinema Agenda – Turkey, 2019

 Altyazi Fasikul’s Free Cinema Agenda is an audiovisual overview of important cases of censorship,…