― 7 мая 2025 г.

Second International Turanic Film Festival: The Turkic World gathers around Cinema

The Second International Turanic Film Festival hosted by the Aegean University and held in cooperation with the Directorate General of Cinema of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Türkiye and the International Organisation of Turkic Culture, was held in Izmir on May 2nd-3rd, 2025. Organized under the motto ‘Red Apple’, the festival once again showcased the richness of the Turkic world in the field of cinema and its cultural ties.

Sultan Raev: ‘Cinema is the most important tool to pass on our common cultural heritage to future generations.’

In the speech he delivered at the opening ceremony of the festival, TURKSOY Secretary General Sultan Raev, emphasised the importance of cinema in passing on our common cultural heritage to future generations and said: ‘This event not only reflects the diversity of Turkic cinema but also provides an opportunity to once again demonstrate our unity and brotherhood to the entire world. I would like to thank all the institutions which contributed to the organisation of the festival and congratulate all participating artists.’

Birol Güven: “Nowadays, no state can be considered as strong unless it is strong in the fifth art”

Mr. Birol Güven, the General Director of Cinema at the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, emphasised the strategic importance of cinema in the digital age and said: ‘If you are not strong in cinema, you are not a strong state. For years, we thought that the world was designed through Hollywood. This is a big problem. If we do not show our own value-oriented films here, it will turn into a one-sided match. We have two options: either we will be producers or subscribers; either we will be storytellers or story listeners. We must produce a lot. We must train new filmmakers. This is absolutely necessary nowadays.’

1,675 Film Applications from 80 Countries

The festival has turned into an international platform with 1,675 film submissions from 80 countries. While Türkiye submitted 324 films, Azerbaijan took part in the event with 32 films followed by Kyrgyzstan with 7, Kazakhstan with 17, Uzbekistan with 13, and Turkmenistan with 10 films. The awards were presented to their winners following the jury's evaluation.

Awards presented in various categories

Awards presented in various categories during the festival were as follows:

First Place in Türkiye: ‘Postal 1974’ by Gökalp Yamen
Best Documentary in Türkiye: ‘Baletler Köyü’ by Fatih Diren
First Prize in Azerbaijan’s Selection: ‘Size Mektub Var’ by Mezahir Haşimov
Special Award of the Jury for Azerbaijan: Erturan Necaji Gol for the film ‘Nowruz’ and Elmar Bayramov for the film ‘Breath’
First Prize in Kazakhstan’s Selection: Ersultan Tolegen for the film ‘Regular People’
First Prize in Kyrgyzstan’s Selection: Candos Dzholdoshov for the film ‘Connection’
Special Award of the Jury for Kyrgyzstan: ‘Letters From the Pamirs’ by Janyl Jusupjan
First Prize in Uzbekistan’s Selection: ‘Magtymguly Fragi’ by Muzaffarkhon Erkinov
First Prize in Turkmenistan’s Selection: ‘Book’ by Hekim Alowow
First Prize in the International Fiction Category: ‘Happy Tape’ by Arshia Zeinali from Iran

Prestige Awards

Prestige awards presented at the festival were as follows:

Contribution to Cinema Award: Director Semih Kaplanoğlu
Contribution to Cultural Diversity Award: Mehmet Hanefi Uzunçam, General Director of the Turkmeneli Television, and Atalay Muratlı, Director of the Turkmeneli Television
Young Talent Award: Azerbaijani artists Inci and Kövsar Qurban
Special Award dedicated to the 70th Anniversary of the Aegean University: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Necibe Nesibova, Deputy Head of Mission of the Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan
Special Award of TURKSOY: Director Janyl Jusupjan
Social Awareness Award: Director Can Ulkay
Media Special Award: Ahmet Caner Baysal, Regional Director of Anadolu Agency, and Mevlüt Şahbaz, Regional Director of TRT
Special Award for the Turkic World Through the Eyes of Children: Ismail Fidan, producer of ‘Rafadan Tayfa’
Award for the Contribution to Human Values: TRT Documentary ‘Water Wars’ producer Uğur Veli and presenter Çağlar Demirkapı
Award for the Contribution to Human Values in the Corporate Sector: Presidency of the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency
Cultural Heritage Award: Minister of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Türkiye Mehmet Nuri Ersoy

At the festival, students of the Turkish Music State Conservatory of the Aegean University performed a zeybek dance, the Azerbaijan Sema Folk Dance Ensemble performed ‘A Potpourri of Azerbaijani Folk Music,’ the Kyrgyzstan ‘Nomadic Kyrgyz Folk Dance,’ and the ‘Süyünbay Sazı’ Folklore Ensemble of Kazakhstan as well as the artists of the Namangan Philharmonic of Uzbekistan took the stage. At the end of the festival artists from all countries took the scene together and sang the song ‘My Homeland’ accompanied by the Rector Prof. Dr. Necdet Budak.

TURKSOY further pursues its activities to strengthen cooperation and cultural ties in the field of cinema within the Turkic World. The success of the 2nd International Turanic Film Festival marks an important step in transmitting our shared culture and art to future generations.