Documentary Educational Resources - Geography / Middle East / Turkey / All Films

Dead Presumed Missing?

Thu, 30 Aug 2018 07:04:00 GMT

Dead Presumed Missing?
Buy Now: $295.00

Between 1963-74, about 2000 Turkish and Greek Cypriots disappeared during hostilities between the two communities of Cyprus. Following an abortive coup in 1974, Turkey invaded and occupied the north of the island. 200,000 Greek Cypriots, a third of the population, fled their homes, becoming refugees in the south. During the Turkish invasion, many died in the war, but their bodies were never recovered. Others (including women and children) vanished behind the advancing Turkish army. To this day, Turkey refuses to offer any explanations. The fate and whereabouts of the Greek and Turkish Cypriots missing remains an official secret. In the confusion of 1974, some, but not all, of the missing Greek Cypriots were buried hurriedly on the Greek side. The return of the remains of the rest cannot be realized since they are behind Turkish lines. In spite of various attempts at resolution, including a UN Committee, both sides still guard the unidentified hidden bones of each others' missing persons The film was shot in 2001 when the possibility of DNA identifiication redefined the problem and gave it a new urgency. By following the desperate attempts of two Greek women to discover the fates of their loved ones, the film explores the signficance of mortuary rituals and the different political lives of dead bodies among the Greek and Turkish Cypriots. Useful in Political Anthropology classes, and to those interested in ethnic violence, recuperation, memory, rituals, DNA identification, and politics of the body.

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Islam: Empire of Faith

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 12:45:00 GMT

Islam: Empire of Faith
Buy Now: $340.00

From the birth of the prophet Muhammad to the glories of the Ottomans, this groundbreaking work illuminates the first thousand years of a misunderstood civilization. Historical renactments; a remarkable explication of Islamic art; and interviews with scholars recount the rise of the islamic civilization and it's profound impact on Western Culture and world history.

The Making of Islam: Empire of Faith by Robert H. Gardner, Producer

The production of Islam: Empire of Faith was a big challenge from the beginning, simply because it covered more than a thousand years of history and culture, and a very large part of the world.

But we really wanted to push beyond the conventional form of historical documentaries, which have depended on pans and tilts of still pictures, supplemented with landscapes and interviews. We wanted to find a way to use the visual techniques usually reserved for fiction motion pictures to tell a story of great scope that took place in pre-photographic history. This meant the project would require very large scale costumed re-enactments and equipment far beyond the ordinary documentary production package of camera, zoom lens, tripod and small light-kit.

We knew that we had to find a way to present images of cultural history — both re-enacted scenes and contemporary scenes of Islamic architecture and city life — in a way that would evoke the past, but maintain a sense of authenticity. The scenes would be dream-like and impressionistic but would still give viewers a sense that what they were seeing was accurate in historical terms.

We designed a production package that included a robotic crane with an 18-foot reach (Jimmi-jib), allowing us to fly the camera through architectural spaces, and a Steadicam that would allow for smooth camera moves through buildings at ground level — even mounting it on a truck to shoot running horses at full speed. We took a wide selection of lenses from extremely wide to telephoto and we also brought a high-speed camera for true slow-motion (500 frames per second) allowing us to slow an action down that actually took one second to fully twenty seconds on-screen. All of these taken together would provide an extraordinarily production palette. But it also meant that we had to travel with more than 40 cases of equipment — and do so in seven different countries. The logistics were severe.

The actual American camera crew was very small — Director of Photography Rege Becker (who also operated the Steadicam) and First Assistant Cameraman and Jib Operator Nick Gardner, who also shot second camera when required. The rest of the crew was hired and trained in each country — Syria, Egypt, Tunisia, Israel, Spain, Turkey and Iran.

It was in Iran that we used a motion picture company — with a crew of 50 — to produce the costumed re-enactments. Iran's foremost Art Director Majid Mirfakhraei, had to create locations, costumes and props for more than a thousand years of history — from the deserts 7th century Arabia, to the palaces of the Ottoman empire. The same team of stunt riders had to be made-up and redressed to play Arabian mounted soldiers, Crusader knights, Mongol raiders, Ghazi horsemen and Ottoman cavalry. A full sized, four-story replica of the holiest shrine in the Muslim world (the Kaaba in Saudi Arabia), had to be built in the deserts of Southern Iran and the vanished world of 8th century Baghdad had to be created in the ruins of a 19th century Persian palace. More than 300 costumes were required, as well as a dozen camels and riders, dozens of sheep and goats, an entire Bedouin encampment and the streets of Jerusalem in the 11th century — complete with market stalls and citizens.

This extraordinary production design, set in epic landscapes, gives the film a startling sense of scope and provides a remarkable window through which to examine the past. The film took 18 months to edit, and is supported by an original score by Leonard Lionnet.

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It's a Young Country

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 12:44:00 GMT

It's a Young Country
Buy Now: $295.00

Commissioned to make a film for a teaching case at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, filmmaker Charles Mann drew upon seven years as a working economist in Turkey to produce a film that captures the spirit of the country's cultural and economic transformation.

Top management of Akbank, arguably Turkey's most successful bank, provide a window into contemporary Turkey and its prospects as they weigh alternative paths for the bank's future growth. Explaining Akbank's emphasis on innovation and youth, Chairman and Managing Director Suzan Sabancı Dinçer sums up Turkey's demographic transformation: "It's a young country!".

Economic historian Professor Yahya Sezai Tezel provides contextual narrative about the country's economic and cultural restructuring. Director Franco Sacchi's inspired cinematography provides images that support and illustrate the film's narrative arc of transformation. This film provides a real sense of engagement with contemporary Turkey by allowing viewers to see the country through the eyes of people both propelling and reacting to change in coastal and Anatolian towns, in universities, in metropolitan centers.

Films in the Development Communications Workshop series

If It Doesn't Rain

If It Doesn't Rain: First Return

It's A Young Country: Turkey and Akbank

Lifecycles

Malawi's Green Revolution

Paths of Hope

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In Pursuit of Lost Time

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 12:44:00 GMT

In Pursuit of Lost Time
Buy Now: $320.00

This is a documentary about the shipwreck excavations along the Agean-Mediterranean coasts and the foundation of Nautical Archaeology in Turkey, after the initial discovery of the shipwrecks by the sponge divers of Bodrum.

In excavating a shipwreck, underwater archaeologists travel back in time. Preserved in these ships is the knowledge of ancient civilizations and cultures. The institute of Nautical Archaeology (INA) has fully excavated four shipwrecks in Turkey since the 1960's, including the 3,300 year old Canaanite wreck which was brought to the surface at Uluburun. Excavation of this ship took 11 years between 1982 - 1993.

The film depicts the passion & adventures of modern underwater archaeologists during 1996 - 1998 including an excavation directed by Dr. Freiderick M Hocker to the 1100 year old Byzantine shipwreck in Bozburun. We also see historical underwater footage shot in the 1960's.

SELECTED SCREENINGS & AWARDS

Best Film on Excavations, ICRONOS, International Archaeological Film Festival of Bordeaux France, 2000

Screened Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 2001

3rd Archaeology Film Biennal, Toulouse, France 2001

3rd Istanbul International Archaeology Film Festival, Turkey, 2000

Bodrum International Environmental Film Festival, Turkey, 1999

4th Boston Turkish Festival, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, TACS

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Mount Nemrud

Tue, 28 Aug 2018 14:50:00 GMT

Mount Nemrud
Buy Now: $320.00

Located in one of the most remote areas of Eastern Turkey and considered the eighth wonder of the ancient world, Mount Nemrud has been shrouded in mystery for more than 2000 years. At 7,700 feet above sea level and containing a 150-foot high tumulus flanked by colossal statues, the Mount Nemrud sanctuary has become synonymous with absolute grandeur.

Widely believed to house the undisturbed tomb of its builder, Mount Nemrud has puzzled researchers for more than a century. Antiochus, a self proclaimed King and God, ruled over Kommagene, a small buffer kingdom situated between the Roman and Parthian Empires during 162 BC and 72 AD. Ambitious and determined to protect his kingdom against his powerful neighbors, he initiated a cultural and religious reform that culminated in the building of Mount Nemrud, his greatest achievement.

Theresa Goell was the first American female archaeologist to lead a dig in Eastern Turkey. Despite her rapidly deteriorating hearing, she became the head of the most extensive and long-term excavation of Mount Nemrud. She spent more than 30 years working to elevate the sanctuary to its rightful place among the great monuments of the ancient world.

Many of the unearthed artifacts and historical information are a result of her tenacious work; for example, The Lion Horoscope is one of archaeology's great finds. Initially excavated by the Germans in 1882, it was re-excavated and studied by Goell in the 1950's. It is the oldest known Greek calendrical horoscope in the world and believed to represent either the date of Antiochus' ascension to the throne or the foundation date of the sanctuary.

Through the use of on-site interviews with world renowned scholars, 3-D computer animations, and battle reinactments, the film makers journey back in time to recreate history. Incorporating rare archival footage of excavations, and memoirs of dedicated archaeologists such as Otto Puchstein and Theresa Goell, Mount Nemrud: The Throne of the Gods is a valuable tool for educators to inform and excite students from young to old who are eager to learn more about the history and achievements of the ancient world.

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The Professional Foreigner

Tue, 28 Aug 2018 10:58:00 GMT

The Professional Foreigner
Buy Now: $320.00

Asen Balikci has been a leading figure in making ethnographic films for many decades. In a series of talks between Balikci and filmmaker Rolf Husmann in different locations, the life and work of Asen Balikci are shown and discussed: the film takes us from Asen's youth in Istanbul to his career in Canada where he became famous for making the Netsilik Eskimo Series, to filming in Afghanistan and then turning to two other activities of his: as a networker for the Commission on Visual Anthropology (CVA) and as a teacher of Summer Schools in Siberia and Bulgaria.

His film work among the Bulgarian Pomak and his still ongoing work in Sikkim (India) conclude the film which is not only the portrait of a famous expert in Visual Ethnography, but also more generally touches upon vital issues of ethnographic filmmaking.

SELECTED SCREENINGS & AWARDS

Mediating Camera - V Moscow International Festival and Scholarly Conference of Visual Anthropology, 2010

Dialektus Festival, Budapest, Hungary, 2010

International Ethnographic Film Festival of Quebec (FIFEQ), Canada, 2010

International Festival of Ethnological Film, Belgrade, Serbia, 2009

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Whose Is This Song?

Fri, 24 Aug 2018 12:26:00 GMT

Whose Is This Song?
Buy Now: $320.00

In her search for the true origins of a haunting melody, Bulgarian filmmaker Adela Peeva travels to Turkey, Greece, Macedonia, Albania, Bosnia, Serbia and Bulgaria. The trip is filled with humor, suspense, tragedy, and surprise as each country's citizens passionately claim the song to be their own and can even furnish elaborate histories for its origins.

The tune emerges again and again in different forms: as a love song, a religious hymn, a revolutionary anthem, and even a military march. The powerful emotions and stubborn nationalism raised by one song seem at times comical and othertimes, eerily telling. In a region besieged by ethnic hatred and war, what begins as a light-hearted investigation ends as a sociological and historical exploration of the deep misunderstandings between the people of the Balkans.

SELECTED AWARDS & SCREENINGS

Golden Rython Award, Golden Chest Award, Sofia International Film Festival, Bulgaria, 2003
Prix ARTE Nominee, European Film Academy Documentary, 2003

United Nations Film Festival, California, 2003

Prix Bartok, 23rd Bilan du Film Ethnographique, Paris, 2004

Tribeca Film Festival, New York, 2004

Award of Commendation, Society for Visual Anthropology/AAA Conference, San Jose, California, 2006

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Asiklar (Those Who Are In Love)

Wed, 18 Jul 2018 13:31:00 GMT

Asiklar (Those Who Are In Love)
Buy Now: $295.00

On a warm afternoon a man sits in a cafe, strumming an instrument and telling stories: epic tales about love and war, history and morality, god and the earth. He is not only a master musician, but an engaging singer as well, keeping his audience of villagers enraptured well into the night.

Those Who Are In Love is a documentary film about these minstrels, called Ashiks, who have been part of Turkish culture for hundreds of years. Ashiks sing stories and poems, accompanying themselves on an instrument called a saz. Their music and tales are essential elements of countryside life across Turkey, with the Ashik filling a vital role in traditional Anatolian society. The stories and poems are sung completely from memory, derived from both Turkish history as well as the Ashik's own personal history. The performance lasts from a few hours to a few days.

Those Who Are In Love is a film that on the one hand, examines a cultural phenomenon unique to one region of the world but on the other hand, rejoices in the power of inspiration and art. It evokes epic imagery from the well-spring of tradition, while dealing with the present realities of individual lives.Those Who Are In Love is one of the first productions to address this topic, filling an essential need in the study of Turkish folk cultures. The film's emphasis is on conveying the poetic sensibilities of the Ashiks and their art while building a narrative out of their lives, personalities, and stories. Relevant historical and cultural information, given through minimal narration, provide the viewer with an informed perspective from which to understand the subject.

Shot in a variety of locations all over Turkey, Those Who Are In Love successfully conveys the emotion and beauty of traditional Anatolian village culture as it struggles with the process of modernization and change.

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