Paylaş
The press conference for the 28th Flying Broom International Women’s Film Festival was held in Ankara on May 7th. Attendees at the meeting, held at HiltonSA, included Halime Güner, Chair of the Flying Broom Foundation Board of Directors; Ayça Yusufoğlu Köroğlu, Head of the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality Department of Culture and Social Affairs, a festival supporter; Dr. Hakan Serhan Sarıkaya, Deputy Director of Culture and Social Affairs at Çankaya Municipality; Şerife Kübra Pekdoğan, Director of Culture and Social Affairs at Etimesgut Municipality; festival consultant Alin Taşçıyan; and Dalım İlteriş Mayadağlı, one of the festival coordinators and programmers.
The countdown has begun for the 28th Flying Broom International Women’s Film Festival, organized by the Flying Broom Foundation. This year, the festival, which will take place from May 28 to June 4 under the slogan “Unique Women, Unique Stories” at the cult Kavaklıdere cinemas and the Etimesgut Municipality 100th Year Republic Cultural Center, will feature 44 films from 29 countries, including Turkey: 26 features, five mediums, and thirteen shorts.
The program consists of the following sections: Each in a Different Color, Without Pink or Blue, Family at the Crime Scene, Spoilers, The Resistance of Memory, Close-Up, and Short Must-Haves.
Tickets will be available on Biletinial and at the Kült Kavaklıdere box office on May 17. Ticket prices are 100 TL for adults and 50 TL for students.
The festival’s opening ceremony will take place on the evening of May 27th at the Ankara State Opera and Ballet. The evening, hosted by renowned actors Şenay Gürler and Yetkin Dikinciler, will feature the presentation of the festival’s Honor, Young Witch, and Wise Olgaç Achievement Awards. This year, the Honor Awards will go to Gülşen Bubikoğlu and Hülya Darcan; the Young Witch Award to Mina Demirtaş; and the Wise Olgaç Achievement Awards to Başak Emre, Bennu Yıldırımlar, and Harika Uygur. The FIPRESCI Award in the “Each One a Different Color” section will be presented at the festival’s closing ceremony on June 3rd at Kült Kavaklıdere.
Supporters of the festival
The festival is organized with the valuable contributions of the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality, Çankaya Municipality, Etimesgut Municipality, UNWomen (United Nations Women), and TBWA. Supporters of the 28th Flying Broom Women’s Film Festival include diplomatic missions screening films from their countries, the Institut Français Ankara, the Embassy of Finland, the Goethe-Institut, the Embassy of Italy, the Embassy of Austria, the Embassy of Croatia, the Embassy of Malta, the Embassy of Switzerland, and the Embassy of Ireland.
The festival’s press conference, held on May 7th at the Ankara HiltonSA, was attended by Halime Güner, Chair of the Flying Broom Foundation; Ayça Yusufoğlu Köroğlu, Head of the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality Department of Culture and Social Affairs, a festival supporter; Dr. Hakan Serhan Sarıkaya, Deputy Director of Culture and Social Affairs at Çankaya Municipality; Şerife Kübra Pekdoğan, Director of Culture and Social Affairs at Etimesgut Municipality; festival consultant Alin Taşçıyan; and Dalım İlteriş Mayadağlı, one of the festival coordinators and programmers. In her opening speech, Güner emphasized the festival’s struggle to survive, now celebrating its 28th anniversary. Referring to its theme, she said, “Women’s artistic production is a kind of demand for memory justice. It’s a demand for silenced voices to be heard, for the erased stories of unique women to be rewritten, and for the dream of a just world. This year, we set out with the idea of unique women, unique stories.”
The Etimesgut Municipality, under the leadership of Erdal Beşikçioğlu, is collaborating with the Flying Broom Women’s Film Festival for the first time and will host many of the festival’s events. Şerife Kübra Pekdoğan stated, “Etimesgut Mayor Erdal Beşikçioğlu, due to his artistic background, is incredibly supportive of any cultural and artistic project that benefits the community.”
In his speech, Dr. Sarıkaya emphasized that the Çankaya Municipality has been a supporter of the Flying Broom UKFF since its inception: “Çankaya is a district at the heart of the Republic, and cultural activities are truly crucial to us, because we know that culture lies at the foundation of the Republic. Therefore, festivals are among the most important structures that carry this culture. This festival, which began 28 years ago, is a miracle indeed, considering the challenges faced by the producers, its organization, and its press. The Flying Broom UKFF is far more than just a festival; it’s an initiative that aims to highlight women’s issues. This is far more important, both for our municipality and for bringing these issues to the attention of the Çankaya district. And they are doing this very well. I state that, as the Çankaya Municipality, we will continue to support the Flying Broom UKFF to the best of our ability, as we do every year, in the coming years. I extend my congratulations and best wishes for success to our Mayor, Hüseyin Can Güner.”
Ayça Yusufoğlu Köroğlu, conveying greetings from Ankara Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Mansur Yavaş, said, “Last year, I had the opportunity to attend the Venice Film Festival, the most established and prestigious film festival in the world. While I was wishing there were such a festival in our capital, I learned that we actually have a Venice Film Festival with a women’s theme, and I was delighted. As ABB, we are already making a pioneering effort to support all festivals in our city, keeping it on our agenda and notes. I would like to thank Flying Broom first and foremost. I would also like to express my gratitude to the local governments, all their support, partners, and agencies.”
Alin Taşçıyan, emphasizing the difference between Flying Broom and other festivals, explained that they had prepared a compact and powerful program, touched on how similar women’s troubles are around the world, and gave examples from films. Addressing the audience, he said, “You can watch all the films in the festival; we’ve prepared a program that won’t make you worry about which one to watch.”
Dalim İlteriş Mayadağlı emphasized the overall quality of the selection, saying, “While preparing the program, we envisioned the impact the stories that would come to life on the screen when the lights went down would have on the audience. The indescribable excitement of sharing the same emotions and witnessing the same stories in the darkened auditorium motivated us as we worked. We didn’t want these films to be simply watched and forgotten. We aimed to deepen their power through interviews with the directors. Through the panels, we aim to expand our reach and create a platform for discussion by placing the themes in the films within a broader context.”
FIPRESCI is 100 years old
As in previous years, the films competing for the FIPRESCI Prize will be screened in the “Each in a Different Color” section of the festival. This year, ten films from Turkey were selected for the competition, including Emine Yıldırım’s “Apollo by Day,” “Athena by Night,” and Zeynep Köprülü’s “Suyüz” (Water Face).
This year’s FIPRESCI Jury of the festival consists of Bettina Hirsch from Germany, Adriana Fernandez from Mexico, and Senem Erdine from Turkey. 2025 marks the 100th anniversary of the foundation of FIPRESCI (International Federation of Film Critics), with which Flying Broom has been collaborating since its sixth year. On this occasion, a panel titled Gender in Film Criticism will be held at Kült Kavaklıdere on Friday, May 30th, with the participation of SİYAD – Cinema Critics Association President Esin Küçüktepepınar and the jury members, and moderated by Flying Broom Women’s Film Festival Advisor Alin Taşçıyan. Flying Broom is also organizing a panel titled Korkutan Değiş: Body Horror Films, based on the film Ugly Stepbrother, which is in the competition selection. The panel at Kült Kavaklıdere on Sunday, June 1st will feature academician Tuğçe Kutlu, Prof. Dr. Bengi Semerci and director Çiğdem Vitrinel will examine the extent of women’s relationship with their bodies and the political dimension of the body horror genre.
Competition films
Tropikal Sevda / Beloved Tropic – Ana Endara Mislov
Paulina Garcia, who made her name in Sebastian Lelio’s unforgettable performance in Gloria, stars alongside Jenny Navarrete in Tropical Love, which tells the story of two struggling women whose business relationship blossoms into friendship. Colombian Ana Maria is an irregular migrant trying to stay in Panama. When she is offered the care of a wealthy woman named Mechi, whose dementia is in its early stages, she sees this as an opportunity to secure her stay, faking a pregnancy. Despite her wealth, Mechi, who lacks the attention of her children and dislikes her previous caregivers, develops an unexpected bond with Ana Maria.
Ağlama, Kelebek / Don’t Cry, Butterfly – Duong Dieu Linh
Set in Hanoi, Cry, Butterfly is essentially a film about women in all traditional societies seeking superstitious solutions to their family problems. As if carrying the burden of the household wasn’t enough, Tam, who is also being cheated on by her husband, seeks help from a white-clad “spiritual teacher” after seeing an ad on Instagram. While Tam struggles to get her life back on track, her daughter Ha, rebelling against societal norms, seeks salvation in studying abroad. Cry, Butterfly masterfully blends social commentary, dark humor, and the fantastical elements familiar to horror films. Vietnamese director Duong Diêu Linh won the Grand Prize in the Critics’ Week section of the Venice Film Festival for his innovative approach and solid mise-en-scène in his debut film.
Gündüz Apollon Gece Athena – Emine Yıldırım
Apollo by Day, Athena by Night invites the audience on a fantastical and entertaining adventure in which a woman raised in an orphanage with the ability to see and communicate with ghosts embarks on a journey to find her mother. The ancient city of Side, with its millennia-old history, hosts this story. Emine Yıldırım’s debut feature, which blends fantasy and mythology, humor and grief, won the Best Film Award in the Future of Asia section of the Tokyo Film Festival and was honored with the SİYAD Award at the Istanbul Film Festival.
Başlama Vuruşu / Kickoff – Roser Corella, Stefano Obino
Kick-Off follows the women of Kök-Taş Village, Kyrgyzstan, as they challenge patriarchal norms through football. These hardworking women finally find a passion outside their homes and families, enjoying outdoor sports and sharing their team spirit. The camera observes their daily lives while capturing their enthusiasm for chasing a ball in their colorful traditional attire. Roser Corella and Stefano Obino masterfully capture the cinematic depiction of how women occupy a space reserved for men in a conservative, traditional society. Kick-Off proves that with a little support and encouragement, women can transform their lives and their communities.
Ay / Moon – Kurdwin Ayub
Iraqi-born Austrian director Kurdwin Ayub won the Special Jury Prize at the 2024 Locarno Film Festival with Moon, the second installment of his Sun, Moon, and Stars trilogy. Moon is a political thriller centered on the unusual relationship between a martial arts instructor and three Jordanian sisters. Sarah, at the end of her career as a contestant and with limited resources to start a new life in her Austrian town, jumps at an unusual offer from an Arab businessman. Staying in a hotel in Jordan, Sarah is taken to a large mansion daily, but her contract prohibits her from setting foot in most areas of the house. Her true surprise is that the three sisters she will be teaching melee combat are only interested in watching television and are only allowed to go to the mall. Ayub uses the metaphor of a cage to lead the audience through the corridors of this mysterious narrative.
Naima – Anna Thommen
Being a woman, an immigrant, a divorced mother, and an educated person whose diploma isn’t recognized forces Naima to reinvent herself repeatedly. Naima, who owns a company in Venezuela with her Swiss husband, is forced to move to Switzerland due to the country’s economic crisis. Her marketing degree isn’t recognized, and after her divorce, she struggles to make ends meet with low-income jobs. She’s separated from her children. But Naima doesn’t give up, setting new goals for herself and her children. She begins training to become a nurse. Director Anna Thommen captures her feminine strength and Latin American spirit in this moving documentary, which premiered at DOK Leipzig.
Su Yüzü – Zeynep Köprülü
Nazan Kesal and Cemre Ebüziyya’s film “Su Yüz” (Water Face), starring a troubled mother and daughter, returned with the Audience Award from the Creteil Women’s Film Festival. Zeynep Köprülü, in her feature debut, portrays a character struggling to accept the past and move forward, unable to grow. Deniz, a bohemian photographer living in France, struggles to cope with feelings of inadequacy, despite appearances. When she returns to her hometown for her mother’s wedding, she confronts the traumas of her past. The film explores the wounding and healing aspects of the volatile mother-daughter relationship, and the inability to resurface serves as a metaphor for Deniz’s state of mind.
Bankamızı Tercih Ettiğiniz İçin Teşekkür Ederiz / Thank You for Banking with Us – Laila Abbas
Palestinian director Laila Abbas’s debut feature is a dark comedy about two sisters who struggle to withdraw money from their deceased father’s bank account. Noura and Mariam, two sisters who haven’t always gotten along, are estranged from their aging father after caring for him all their lives. They believe their older brother, estranged from his family in the US, doesn’t deserve to inherit his son under Sharia law simply because he’s a man. They seek a way to access the account by delaying the news of their father’s death as long as possible. Set in Ramallah, this satire offers insights into Muslim-Palestinian middle-class life and family structure.
Görünmeyen Şeylerin Doğası / The Nature of Invisible Things – Rafaela Camelo
Female friendship and solidarity, mother-daughter relationships, the aura and power surrounding women, and the cycle of birth and death are at the core of this touching Brazilian film. Rafaela Camelo’s debut feature, competing in the Generation Kplus section of the Berlin Film Festival, focuses on two girls and their mother. Gloria, who spends her vacation at the hospital where her mother, a nurse, works because she has no one to care for her, and Sofia, who is visiting her grandmother Bisa, a mystical healer undergoing Alzheimer’s treatment, become friends. When Sofia’s mother, Simone, is forced to take Bisa to her home in the country, Antonia supports her with her care.
Çirkin Üvey Kardeş / The Ugly Stepsister – Emilie Blichfeldt
Norwegian director Emilie Blichfeldt has modernized the Brothers Grimm’s Cinderella fairy tale into a dark body horror film. The film’s protagonist is Elvira, Agnes’s step-sister, who, having replaced the fairy tale’s Cinderella, falls in love with the Prince. She is prepared to go to any lengths to win the Prince’s heart and compete with her beautiful stepsister, Agnes, who has recently published a book of poetry. Elvira’s beauty craze pushes her boundaries, while the family’s socioeconomic situation and the political aspects of the ball add a realistic dimension to this fantasy film.
Movie List
Hafızanın Direnişi
Çalınan Gezegenim / My Stolen Planet – Farahnaz Sharifi
Sınırdaki Yıldız / Star On The Border – Berivan Saruhan
Yasak / The Ban – Roisin Agnew
Mölln Mektupları / The Moelln Letters – Martina Priessner
Şehir ve Mesih – Aylin Kuryel, Raşel Meseri
Üçüncü Gurbet – Mediha Güzelgün
Oyunbozanlar
Kara Kutu Günlükleri / Black Box Diaries – Shiori Ito
Hiçbir Şey Normal Değil – Ceylan Özgün Özçelik
Orenda – Pirjo Honkasalo
Boşluktaki Bedenler / Stray Bodies – Elina Psikou
Buzlar Kraliçesi / The Ice Tower – Lucile Hadzihalilovic
Telefon Çaldığında / When the Phone Rang – Iva Radivojević
Olay Yeri: Aile
Castillo – Abigail Mallia
Gülizar – Belkıs Bayrak
Babalık İzni / Paternal Leave – Alissa Jung
Vermiglio – Maura Delpero
Pembesiz Mavisiz
Hayalperestler / Dreamers – Joy Gharoro-Akpojotor
Hatırladıkların – Melisa Kenanoğlu
Başını Dik Tut / Head Up – Tuğçe Taşer
Tavşan Tepesi / Sandbag Dam – Čejen Černić Čanak
Yakın Plan
Arkadaşım Pınar – Eylem Şen
Biz Radyoyu Çok Sevdik – Nazan Haydari, Özden Cankaya, Cem Hakverdi
Ceyar’ı kim Öldürdü – Gül Abus Semerci
Gotûbêjin – Nimet Gatar
On Saniye – Ceylan Özgün Özçelik
Seva – Nesime Karateke
Kısa Olmazsa Olmaz
Dank – Tuvana Simin Günay
Dilan Hakkında Konuşmalıyız – Umut Şilan Oğurlu
Günaydın Anne – Oben Yılmaz
İstanbul Sözleşmesi Yaşatır – Esra Yıldız
Kabuk – Sema Güler
Kurtlar – Ecre Begüm Bayrak
Mükemmel – Ece Dizdar
Neredeyse Kesinlikle Yanlış – Cansu Baydar
