Ministry withdraws from Golden Orange Film Festival reinstatement of documentary
Following the decision to reinstate Nejla Demirci's documentary "Kanun Hükmü," which portrays the struggle of two dismissed public employees, into the program of the Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism has announced its withdrawal from the festival.
The ministry made the following statement on its social media account:
"The Ministry of Culture and Tourism is dedicated to working with the vision of preserving, developing, and strengthening Turkey's cultural and artistic values.
"In line with this vision, it supports hundreds of cultural and artistic events held both within the country and abroad.
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"One of the most significant events in the field of Turkish cinema, the 60th Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival, is currently in the process of being organized. In the documentary competition section of this festival, the documentary titled 'Kanun Hükmü' is included.
"It is deeply regrettable that in such an important festival, there is a possibility of using the power of art to propagate FETÖ terrorist organization propaganda under the pretext of victimization.
"Our ministry will not be a part of any effort to discredit the heroic struggle our nation waged on July 15th, or to use art as a means of provocation.
"For this reason, we announce our withdrawal from the Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival."
What happened?
The documentary "Kanun Hükmü," directed by Nejla Demirci and depicting the struggle of two dismissed public employees, was removed from the National Documentary Film Competition of the 60th Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival due to allegations that legal proceedings involving one of the individuals featured in the documentary were ongoing.
On September 22, Ahmet Boyacıoğlu, the Director of the Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival, made an announcement regarding this issue, stating that the film would be excluded from the festival until the legal process was completed. He added, "We deeply believe in the independence of cinema and the freedom of artists to express their ideas."
Director Demirci, in response to the announcement and the sanctions imposed, characterized them as "unlawful."
Subsequently, members of the festival's jury announced that they would be unable to fulfill their duties under these circumstances. Later on, some competition films also withdrew from the festival. (AÖ/VK)