Turkish filmmakers call for Antalya film fest committee

In a press conference on June 19, Antalya Mayor Menderes Türel announced that they have decided to merge the national and international contest categories in the Antalya International Film Festival, which will be held between Oct. 21 and 27 this year.

"By combining the national and international contests we will have a stronger program. Thus, we will show greater support to the globalization of Turkish cinema. Today, there are almost 30 national film festivals in Turkey. But we aim to bring in the global identity that Antalya deserves," he said. 

Criticizing this decision as a "historical mistake" and asking the festival committee to reverse it, various Turkish cinema associations and organizations made a joint press announcement on June 31 and said the Antalya Film Festival has been a tradition, organization and memory of the Turkish cinema sector for 53 years. 

"At a time that the festival has reached a level where it can contribute more to our cinema, such a wrong decision has both surprised and offended the Turkish film industry," the statement said.

 "Has Turkish cinema been a handicap in preventing the festival from having a global identity for the last 53 years? No. With this festival, all of Turkey has felt the pulse of our cinema. All of the talents from our cinema have premiered their films at this festival. Our stars have shined at this festival. With the removal of the national competition, an important channel for our film industry will also be removed. The approach that 'the national and international competitions have been combined' does not reflect the truth. National films have already been shown in the international contest of the festival so far, too. The long and short of it, the 53-year national contest was...

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