TRT "12 Punto," the fifth edition organized by Turkish public broadcaster TRT to bring a fresh perspective to the cinema industry, concluded with an awards ceremony for the year 2023.
During the event, Mehmet Zahid Sobacı, director general of TRT, emphasized the significance of their commitment to the Turkish film sector as a public broadcaster. He expressed the joy of supporting the industry robustly and contributing to box office successes by filling cinema halls with their joint productions.
Sobacı announced that this year, "12 Punto" took on a new dimension. Four completed TRT joint productions in the editing phase had the opportunity to meet with selection committees from prestigious film festivals such as Cannes, Venice, Sundance, Locarno and Rotterdam. The 20-minute edited versions of these films were screened for the committee members. Sobacı expressed his hope that in the upcoming years, these films would have the chance to be showcased at major festivals.
Over 100 feature-length films and nearly 400 short films applied for the "12 Punto," showcasing the growing interest and participation in the event. He thanked all the participants for their efforts and wished them success in their cinematic endeavors.
Sobacı also highlighted the presence of important guests from the Balkan region this year. Presidents of film centers from Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro and Slovenia attended the event to meet with finalists and discuss funding opportunities in their respective countries. Sobacı extended his gratitude to these guests and expressed his belief that Turkish-Balkan joint productions would witness a significant increase in the coming years.
Awarded projects
"The Green Border" by Agnieszka Holland and "In The Shadow Of The Horns" by Ognjen Glavonic received the TRT International Co-Production Award.
"Hayal Kuşu" ("Dream Bird") by Murat Pay and "Kuduz" ("Rabid") by Abdurrahman Öner received the Sarajevo Film Festival's Cinelink Award.
The TRT Co-Production Award was presented to Eylem Kaftan for her "Gerçek bir Kadın" ("A Real Woman"), Alican Durbaş for his "Lo-fi" and Ali Vatansever for his "Bir Arada ve Yalnız" ("Lifelike").