This is something we should all attend. What an opportunity!

Heidi

           Sidestreets is pleased to present, in its Second Art Film Series, the films of international award-winning Turkish Cypriot novelist and film-maker Dervish Zaim.

            All films - except Dot (Nokta), venue to be announced -  will be screened at Sidestreets, 22 Mahkemeler Onu, Lefkosa, in Turkish with English subtitles.

The aim of this series is twofold.

First, as part of its mission to showcase the work of  Cypriot artists  which is of international caliber and transcends the local, Sidestreets will be screening for the first time in Cyprus nearly the entire cinematographic oeuvre – feature films and documentaries – of the country’s foremost film-maker.

Secondly, in contrast to the situation in other parts of the world, film has traditionally been undervalued in Cyprus as an artistic medium, as a form of expression, and as a medium of personal, sociological, and political communication and questioning. Through various initiatives, such as short film screenings, panel discussions and series of both classic and contemporary films (“Conversations on Film,” (May, 2008); “Art and Art Audiences,” (Jan., 2008); “Art Film Series I: Ingmar Bergman” (Feb-March, 2009), Sidestreets has been working to bring public attention to this medium. The Dervish Zaim series represents a further significant step in this direction.

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Dervish Zaim was born in Famagusta, Cyprus  in 1964. He majored in economics and administrative sciences at Bosphorus University, Istanbul (1988), and received his Master’s degree in Cultural Studies from Warwick University in 1994. He also attended a course in independent film production in London organized by the Hollywood Film Institute. He began his work in film in 1991 with the experimental video Hang the Camera, followed by the TV documentary Rock Around the Mosque. Between 1992 and 1995, he worked as a television writer and producer and directed numerous television shows. In 1995, his first novel, Ares Harikalar Dünyasında (Ares in Wonderland) won the prestigious Yunus Nadi Literary Award in Turkey; his feature films and documentaries have been screened to critical acclaim at international and national film festivals, where they have won numerous awards.

The films to be screened in Sidestreets’ Art Film Series are:

Friday, 24 April, 2009

Parallel Trips (Paralel Yolculuklar)

7.00 pm

“Parallel Trips” (2004; 115 minutes) is a documentary based on Cyprus jointly directed and produced by Dervis Zaim and Greek Cypriot Panicos Chrysanthou. Fiachra Gibbons of the British newspaper The Guardian reported on 1 May 2004: “Parallel Trips is a tough film. It was shown for the first time to a shocked silence at the Istanbul film festival earlier this month, and was screened again in Nicosia in the turbulent week leading up to the referendum on the UN plan to reunite the island last week.” In Zaim’s words: “We know we can live together, but we still have to ask why we did this to each other."

Tuesday, 28 April, 2009

Somersault in a Coffin (Tabutta Rövaşata)

7.00 pm

(1996; 75 minutes; Toronto Film Festival, San Sebastian Film Festival): Directed by Dervis Zaim, produced by Ezel Akay and Dervis Zaim, and made on a shoestring budget with a cast of three main actors (Ahmet Ugurlu, Tuncel Kurtiz, Aysen Aydemir) and a few theater players, Zaim’s feature film debut immediately established itself as a cinematic masterpiece, winning some twenty awards in Turkey and internationally, including:  

1998: San Francisco International Film Festival: SKYY Prize – Best Film;

1998: D’Annonay International Film Festival – Best Film, Best actor

1997: Montpellier Mediterranean Film Festival: Critics’ Award, Golden Antigone – Special Mention

1997: Thessaloniki Film Festival: Best Actor, Silver Alexander, Nomination for Golden Alexander;

1997: Turin International Festival: International Feature Film Competition: Audience Award, Jury Special Prize, Nomination for the Prize of the City of Turin for Best Film;

1997: Amiens International Film Festival: NETPAC Award,

1997: Istanbul Film Festival: FIPRESCI Award;

1996: Antalya International Short Film/Video Festival: Best Editing;

1996: Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival: Best Film, Best Screenplay, Best Male Actor, Best Editing;

Thursday, 30 April, 2009

Elephants and Grass (Filler ve Çimen)

7.00 pm

(2000; 113 minutes; Rotterdam Film Festival): Directed by Dervis Zaim, Produced by Ali Akdeniz, Dervis Zaim, Cast: Haluk Bilginer, Taner Birsel, Ugur Polat, Ali Sürmeli, Sanem Çelik.

Awards:

2001: Bratislava International Film Festival: Nominated for the Grand Prix;

2001: Istanbul International Film Festival: National Competition – Best Female Actor, FIPRESCI Prize;

2001: Siyad Turkish Cinema Awards: Best Director, Best Screenplay;

2001: Orhan Ariburnu Awards: Best Film, Best Director

2000: Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival: Best Director, Best Art Direction, Best Female Actor, Best Editing.

Tuesday, 5 May, 2009

Mud (Çamur)

7.00 pm

(2003; 98 minutes; Venice Film Festival): Directed by Dervis Zaim, Produced by Marco Müller, Dervis Zaim, Cast: Mustafa Uğurlu,Taner Birsel, Yelda Reynaud, Bülent Emin Yarar

Awards:

2003: Venice Film Festival: Counter Currents division – UNESCO Award.

2003: Orhan Ariburnu Awards: Mehmet Emin Toprak Award

Thursday, 7 May, 2009

Waiting for Heaven (Cenneti Beklerken)

7.00 pm

2006; 107 minutes; Cairo Film Festival): Directed by Dervis Zaim, Produced by Dervis Zaim and Baran Seyhan, Cast: Serhat Tutumluer, Melisa Sözen, Mesut Akusta, Nihat Ileri (Cairo Film Festival)

Awards:

2007: Cairo Film Festival: Best Artistic Direction;

2006: Siyad Turkish Cinema Awards: Best Musical Score;

2007: Golden Chrysalis Film Festival: Jury Special Award, Best Music, Best Editing, Best Art Direction;

2007: Ankara Film Festival: Best Art Director, Best Musical Score;

2006: Antalya Film Festival: Best Special Effects

Monday, 11 May, 2009

Dot (Nokta)

6.00 pm

(2008; 75 minutes; Montreal Film Festival, Sarajevo Film Festival): Directed by Dervis Zaim, Produced by Dervis Zaim, Baran Seyhan, Cast: Mehmet Ali Nuroglu, Serhat Kılıç, Settar Tanrıögen, Sener Kökkaya. (Montreal Film Festival, Sarajevo Film Festival).

The latest film by Dervish Zaim will be released in cinemas in Turkey early in May, and is expected to premiere in North Cyprus shortly afterwards on May 11, as part of the Cyprus-European Film Festival. (Venue to be announced).

Tuesday, 12 May, 2009

8.00 pm

Discussion with Dervish Zaim at Sidestreets