‘The Foreigners of the Oscars’ introduces the world's 'others’ 

While the 93rd Academy Awards ceremony is approaching despite being delayed this year, Istanbul Modern Cinema is offering its exclusive “The Foreigners of the Oscars” selection for cinephiles until March 8. Organized for the ninth time, the collection offers spellbinding films from the Oscars’ Best International Feature category.

The program highlights movies that represent the different geographies and cultures that Hollywood still considers "other," despite having been nominated for Oscars and winning awards at various festivals around the world.

The movies are online and free of charge. You can visit Istanbul Modern's website for more information about the screenings.

Screening Program

• ‘Asia’: Directed by Ruthy Pribar, “Asia” will be shown between March 6 and 8. The movie, starring Alena Yiv, Shira Haas and Tamir Mula, is the Israeli director’s first feature-length film. Focusing on the story of a Russian mother and daughter living as immigrants in Israel, the production looks at the relationship dynamics between two women of different generations. Asia struggles with single motherhood and her strenuous job. And if her life wasn't already difficult enough, it turns out that her daughter Vika is terminally ill. Without resorting to melodrama, the director uses a humble and caring approach to narrate this mother-daughter story.

  

• ‘Mila’: Greek director Christos Nikou’s “Mila” (“Apples”) will meet spectators from Feb. 28 to March 2. Starring Aris Servetalis, Sofia Georgovassili and Anna Kalaitzidou, the film is an allegory on memory and identity loss. The director's first film presents the story of an unknown virus causing sudden amnesia in people. One day, middle-aged Aris wakes up on the bus and can’t remember who he is or why he was on that bus. Afterward, he waits at the state clinic for someone familiar to recognize and claim him. The movie tells a touching pandemic story with its stylized cinematography and black humor.
• ‘Collectiv’: Romania’s Oscar-nominated “Collectiv” (“Collective”) can be viewed by cinephiles between Feb. 26 and 28. Directed by Alexander Nanau, the movie stars Razvan Lutac, Mirela Neag and Catalin Tolontan. The documentary portrays the story of reporters working in a sports newspaper who uncover a huge health scandal that ended with the death of dozens of innocent people, and which involved the government and property owners. While the documentary genre is uncommon for the Oscars' Best International Feature Film category, “Collectiv” is the only one of its kind this year. Despite the local nature of the story, the movie reminds viewers of the virtue of journalism and the importance of pursuing truth.

• ‘Los Sonambulos’: The nomination from Argentina “Los Sonambulos” (“The Sleepwalkers”) will be open to access between Feb. 28 and March 2. Directed by Paula Hernandez, the movie stars Erica Rivas, Ornella D'Elia and Marilu Marini. Focusing on the relationship of a mother and daughter, the production places viewers at the center of a family drama that reflects the mental states of each character. Luisa is on vacation at her mother-in-law’s summer house with her husband and daughter Ana. She discovers that Ana, who is just starting puberty, is a sleepwalker. In this family gathering where three different generations come together, hidden secrets are revealed.
• ‘Druk’: Directed by Thomas Vinterberg, “Druk” (“Another Round”) will be screened between Feb. 20 and 22. Starring Mads Mikkelsen, Thomas Bo Larsen and Magnus Millang, the movie is about aging and alcoholism. Formerly a successful and beloved high school teacher, Martin’s career and marriage are both on a downhill slope. When he gets together with his friends for a birthday, they make a pact: they decide to drink more as a means to prove the hypothesis that "a person is not born with enough alcohol in his blood." They gradually increase the dose of the drinks and turn it into an experiment.

  

• ‘200 Meters’: Ameen Nayfeh’s first feature-length film, "200 Meters," is Jordan’s nomination for the Oscars. The movie will be shown between March 4 and 6. The film, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival, is both a snapshot of the war-like daily life of Palestinians and an entertaining road film with black humor flair. In the story, Mustafa is a construction worker who lives on the Palestinian side of the West Bank, while his wife and family live on the other side, only 200 meters away. One day he finds out that his son is injured but is not allowed to cross the border. He ends up starting off on a dangerous 200-kilometer journey with the help of a smuggler.

• ‘Atlantis’: Valentyn Vasyanovych’s “Atlantis” will be available between Feb. 22 and 24. The movie portrays a dystopic world mixed with hope and tragedy. In 2021, the Donbas and Crimea regions in Ukraine are covered with waste and mines and abandoned to turn into a desert unfit for human life following the invasion of Russia. Sergey, a soldier suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, is in charge of finding the corpses of missing soldiers and befriends Katya, a young volunteer hoping to restore peaceful energy to a war-torn region. Can their love and relationship transform and heal this gloomy environment?
• ‘Le Miracle Du Saint Inconnu’: Alaa Eddine Aljem’s “Le Miracle Du Saint Inconnu” (“The Unknown Saint”) can be seen on Istanbul Modern's website between Feb. 24 and 26. In the movie, Amine buries a bag of stolen money on a hill in the middle of the desert, making it look like a derelict grave. Years later, when he returns from prison having completed his sentence, he returns only to find that the place has become a shrine for an unknown saint where tourists seek healing and local people make money. Amine has to sneak in and "steal" the money he has hidden. The production is a clever, bold and thought-provoking black comedy from Morocco.