Malatya Film Fest announces new program

MALATYA - Anadolu Agency

Vasip Şahin, Malatya’s mayor (L) and actor Kenan Işık poses together during a press conference for the film festival. AA Photo

The fourth Malatya Film Festival has announced its schedule for this year, promising a week’s worth of film fun featuring commemorations of departed and living stars.

“There will be an exclusive award ceremony in Nov. 21 and there will be an exclusive night for Kemal Sunal, who is also from Malatya. The legendary [Yılmaz Güney] film ‘Sürü’ [Herd] will be shown to commemorate Tuncel Kurtiz, the legendary Turkish actor who passed away last month,” said Vasip Şahin, Malatya’s mayor and the festival’s honorary president.

Meanwhile, Palestinian director Rashid Masharawi and Turkish actors and actresses Eşref Kolçak, Murat Soydan, Muhterem Nur and Filiz Akın have been announced as this year’s recipients of the festival’s honorary awards. The quintet will receive their accolades at an event on the opening day of the festival.

The festival, which will be screening 130 films, has received support from various industry personalities, especially producers Osman Alkan and Hüseyin Hüsnü Kılıç; cinema historian Alin Taşçıyan; directors Nazif Tunç and Gökhan Yorgancıgil and academic Hülya Uçansu. The films to be screened will include works from acclaimed directors, the latest from independent cinema, short films and documentaries from Turkey and around the world, as well as local and international films.