Turkish and regional cinema at !f Istanbul

!f Istanbul has announced nine films in its Home section, combining recent works from Turkey with a spotlight on independent films from neighboring countries. The festival separately also features two new thought-provoking films from Turkey -- the world premiere of "Drawers" by award winning directors M. Caner Alper and Mehmet Binay and "Spirit of Dust" by Nesimi Yetik. The 14th edition of the !f Istanbul International Independent Film Festival runs in Istanbul Feb. 12-22, followed by Ankara and Izmir from Feb. 26 - March 1, 2015. Three films are from Turkey, including "Depo: Life In Mental Hospitals" (Director: Can Dinlenmiş and Ege Kanar); "The Tree of Eternity" (Director: Kâzım Kızıl) and "Muxtar: The Village Headman"(Director: Ahmet Canerik).

'Muxtar: The Village Headman'/Turkey
Director: Ahmet Canerik

One of Ahmet Canerik's biggest dreams was to be elected to the role of "village headman" in Dersim, Tunceli province. Spanning the three years of his election campaign, the humorous film documents the period of Canerik's political campaign.

'And We Will Throw The Sea Behind You'/France
Directors: Anouk Mangeat, Noemi Aubry, Clement Juillard and Jeanne Gomas

In the Middle East, there is a tradition of pouring water behind someone who is leaving, a good luck ritual to wish him or her a safe passage. However, it is not even certain whether Aziz, Sidiqi, Housine, Younes, Rahim and Noyan will ever be back. The film recounts their long journey through various countries, including Iran, Turkey, Greece and Germany, and tells the stories of people whose lives are surrounded by impossibilities.

'Haunted'/ Germany and Syria
Director: Liwaa Yazji

Haunted is about the Syrian people's relationship with their homes during the war. What is a home in a physical and a metaphorical sense? And how do they feel when they are forced to leave? Yazji takes the viewer on a surreal journey through the lives of nine individuals who are either internally displaced in Syria or seeking refuge in Lebanon. Through picturing daily life activities such as packing and unpacking suitcases, doing the laundry or complaining about the loss of a favorite coffee pot, the director strikingly captures the experience of being constantly ready to depart. It is the contrast between the simplicity of things on the one side and a restless bewilderment that seems to haunt the minds of the protagonists, which expresses the impact that a sense of uncertainty can have on persons who are deprived of their own secure and private space.

'Depo: Life In Mental Hospitals'/Turkey
Directors: Can Dinlenmiş and Ege Kanar

"Depo" is a feature documentary focusing on the mental health system and state regulated institutions in Turkey. It takes viewers on a tour of mental hospitals in Turkey in 2014.

'Our Terrible Country'/ Syria, Lebanon
Director: Mohammad Ali Atassi and Ziad Homsi

The film takes viewers on the perilous journey of Yassin Haj Saleh, a well-known Syrian intellectual and dissident, and the young photographer Ziad Homsi who travel together in an arduous and dangerous route from the liberated area of Douma/Damascus to Raqqa in northern Syria, only to find themselves eventually forced to leave their home country for a temporary exile in Turkey.

'The Beekeeper'/Switzerland
Director: Mano Khalil

"The Beekeeper" depicts the touching story of Ibrahim Gezer, a Kurdish beekeeper from southeast Turkey, and his unusual experience of integration into the seemingly conservative heart of today's Switzerland. The turmoil of the decades-long conflict between the Turkish state and the armed PKK, robbed Gezer of everything that he had: his wife, two of his children, his country and over 500 bee colonies, namely his means of making a living. He is left only with his love for bees and an unshakeable faith in humanity. Displaced from his home and livelihood, the beekeeper discovers a new life in Switzerland.

'Our Atlantis'/France, Armenia, Turkey
Director: Arthur Sukiasyan

A touching documentary about a former Armenian children's camp in Istanbul, which was built by orphans and hosted them from the 1960s onwards with the aim of preserving the culture and religion of the Armenian minority, before being shut down by Turkish authorities. In addition to these films, two other films from Turkey are:

'Iranian'/Iran
Director: Mehran Tamadon

A documentary by Paris-based Iranian film-maker Mehran Tamadon, who invited four supporters of the Islamic regime to live with him and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of a secular society, including the veil, abortion and freedom of the press.

'Drawers'
Directors: M. Caner Alper & Mehmet Binay

In their second feature film, directors Alper and Binay touch upon teenage female sexuality, a subject that has not yet been explored in Turkish cinema. "Zenne Dancer," the directors' first feature film, gained international recognition with 25 awards in over 70 international film festivals. "Zenne Dancer" told the tragic story of a gay honor killing in Istanbul, which was inspired by the tragic murder of Ahmet Yıldız in 2008. It was the closing film of "!f Istanbul 2012" and was presented by British actor Rupert Everett to raise awareness about LGBT rights in Turkey.

'Spirit of Dust'
Director: Nesimi Yetik

The film is one of the nominees for the 2015 !f Inspired International Film Competition, which is designed to discover and award emerging visions in cinema. The film, which was named the Best Film at the Adana Golden Boll Film Festival, focuses on the life of Metin, a cleaner who aspires to be a Turkish music star.