Ankara Film Festival opens at ceremony

ANKARA

The 33rd Ankara Film Festival, organized by the World Mass Media Research Foundation, opened on Nov. 3 with an award ceremony held at the MEB Şura Hall. The ceremony, started with the presentation of plaques of appreciation to the festival supporters, continued with the presentation of Honorary Awards and Foundation Special Awards.

Writer, musician, screenwriter, director Zülfü Livaneli, conductor Rengim Gökmen and translator, film critic, journalist and writer Sevin Okyay were the recipients of this year’s festival awards.

For the first time this year, the festival presented the Foundation Special Awards to actress Farah Zeynep Abdullah, and producer, director and screenwriter Ceylan Özgün Özçelik.

The ceremony ended with the Livaneli Songs concert by the Ankara State Opera and Ballet artists.

The 33rd Ankara Film Festival will continue through Nov. 11 at the Büyülü Fener Kızılay Movie Theater. Within the scope of the festival, a total of 76 films will be screened under the titles including the national competitions, world cinema and special screenings.

The festival awards will be given in 12 categories, including the Best Film Award of 50,000 Turkish Liras in the National Feature Film Competition category and the Mahmut Tali Öngören Best Debut Film Award of 20,000 liras given to the first films.