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FEATURE NARRATIVE

Ahmet is a soldier in the Syrian government forces. He works as a photographer at a secret military compound where the bodies of rebels killed by the Assad regime are catalogued before being destroyed. Ahmet has been unable to speak since suffering an injury to his neck earlier in the war. He secretly copies the files to a flashdrive with a plan to make the horrors known to the world. Stuffing the original flash drive into his pocket, he picks up his wife Leyla and sets off, hoping to cross through rebel-held territory to the north and seek asylum in Turkey.

Director's Biography:

Derviş Zaim graduated from Boğaziçi University (Istanbul) with an economics degree and then from Warwick University (UK) with an MA in cultural studies, PHD in Cinema from Maltepe University. His debut feature Tabutta Rövaşata (Somersault In A Coffin), made in 1997, won him international recognition and numerous awards at leading festivals worldwide. This was followed in 2000 by Filler ve Çimenler (Elephants and Grass), which achieved similar success at national and international festivals. His third feature, Çamur (Mud), considers the ethnic problem in Cyprus and won the UNESCO Award at the Venice Film Festival in 2003. Next came Cenneti Beklerken (Waiting for Heaven, 2006), Nokta (Dot, 2008) and Gölgeler ve Suretler (Shadows and Faces, 2011), a trilogy reflecting on three of Turkey’s traditional art forms. Devir (Cycle) and Bal Balık (Fish) and Rüya (Dream) are his last films which have been screened in many festivals and won awards. He is also author of the 1992 award-winning novel, ‘Ares in Wonderland’ and ‘Ruyet’ (2019). Now based in Istanbul, Zaim also lectures on filmmaking at a number of universities.
Derviş Zaim
Derviş Zaim
Derviş Zaim
2022
125 Minutes
Turkey
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