İzmir Film Festival to begin after 11 years

IZMIR - Hürriyet Daily News

A scene from the film ‘Love and Revolution,’ one of the films that will be screened at the festival, which will be organized after a 11 year of interval since 2000.

İzmir Film Festival, which was held between 1989 and 2000, is starting again with the support of Dokuz Eylül University and İzmir Mucipality.

The festival will start on April 22 at the Ahmed Adnan Saygun Arts and Cultural Center, and will feature 103 movies.

Ten Turkish movies from the last year will be shown at the festival, such as “Aşk ile Devrim” (Love and Revolution), “Bu Son Olsun” (This Will be the Last), “Eylül” (September), “Geriye Kalan”(The Rest), “İz” (Trace), “Labirent” (Labyrinth), “Nar” (Pomegranate) and “Oğul” (Son). The movies will compete to receive the Golden Simurg award during the festival.

Dokuz Eylül University rector Mehmet Füzün introduced the new festival at a press conference. “This festival brings the state, government and municipality together,” he said, adding that it would also help contribute to İzmir’s World Expo nomination.

Nuri Bilge Ceylan, who has achieved international success with “Once Upon A Time in Anatolia,” will take part of the festival with three movies. He will also be at workshops on April 23, organized by the French Culture Center.

A photograph exhibition titled “Cinemascope Turkey” will open on April 22, as part of the festival.
After the opening of the photography exhibition, cinephile’s will be able to watch one of the rare classics of early cinema, Georges Melies silent 1902 movie, “The Journey to the Moon.”

The festival will include international movies, fiction movies and documentary sections. Each movie will be shown five times during the festival, and Dokuz Eylül university students will also have the chance to display their own works.