The 35th Ankara Film Festival, organized by the Dünya Kitle İletişim Vakfı, kicked off with a ceremony at the Şinasi Stage. During the ceremony, which also commemorated Festival President İnci Demirkol, who had passed away the night before, the Honor Awards were presented.
Haşim KILIÇ
AT the opening ceremony of the festival, which was organized with support from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism’s General Directorate of Cinema, the General Directorate of State Theaters, Ankara Metropolitan Municipality, Çankaya Municipality, and the Delegation of the European Union to Turkey, the Honor Awards found their recipients. During the evening, appreciation plaques were also presented to Ambassador Thomas Hans Ossowski, Head of the Delegation of the European Union to Turkey; Hüseyin Can Güner, Mayor of Çankaya; and Tamer Karadağlı, General Director of State Theaters, in recognition of their contributions.
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD TO MÜJDAT GEZEN
In the ceremony hosted by Nefise Karatay, Aziz Nesin Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to the accomplished actor Müjdat Gezen, while the Art Veteran Award, given to artists who grew up in Ankara, went to flute virtuoso Şefika Kutluer. The Mass Media Award was presented to producer Kurtuluş Özyazıcı. Additionally, the Foundation Special Award, given for the third time this year, was awarded to editor, director, and producer Selda Taşkın, along with actor Berkay Ateş.
OUR STRUGGLE WILL CONTINUE
Presenting the award to Kurtuluş Özyazıcı, Menderes Samancılar expressed his thoughts during the ceremony, stating: “Despite all our passion and pain, I condemn the femicides in our country, the abuse of children, the cruelty against children, and the harm inflicted on street animals. As artists and festival organizers, we stand firmly behind this struggle. Ankara residents are the representatives who will carry this banner forward.”
FESTIVAL PROGRAM
The 35th Ankara Film Festival, taking place at the Büyülü Fener Kızılay Cinema from November 7-15, will feature ten films in the National Feature Film Competition making their Ankara premieres, while eight films will compete in the National Documentary Film Competition and twelve in the National Short Film Competition. The program, showcasing both the latest and classic examples of world cinema from France to India, Italy to Lithuania, will offer a week of festival excitement to Ankara’s film enthusiasts.
The festival’s closing and awards ceremony will be held on November 15 at the Ankara State Theater Şinasi Stage, once again hosted by Nefise Karatay.
