58th Golden Orange Film Festival Unveils Documentary And Short Film Competition Juries!

The 58th Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival has announced the jury line-up for both the National Documentary and the Short Film Competitions. The Festival, which runs from October 2-9, 2021, will be hosted by the Antalya Metropolitan Municipality with the support of the Turkish Ministry of Culture & Tourism

In a written statement, the Mayor of Antalya, Muhittin Böcek, indicated that films in the National Documentary Film Competition would this year be judged by a jury comprising director Didem Pekün, screenwriter-director, Pelin Esmer, and writer-journalist, Pınar Öğünç. Mayor Böcek also named the jury for the Short Film Competition, which is to be made up of the actor-screenwriter-director, Onur Saylak, the actress, Öykü Karayel, and the screenwriter-producer-director, Tunç Şahin.

Didem Pekün, Pelin Esmer and Pınar Öğünç to Judge the Pick of the Past Year’s Documentaries

The National Documentary Film Competition, a showcase of the past year’s standout documentaries, comes with a TL40,000 cash prize for Best Film in addition to a Special Jury Prize worth TL20,000. The three-person jury to decide the awards will feature the artist, Didem Pekün, the screenwriter, producer and director, Pelin Esmer, and the screenwriter, director, writer and journalist, Pınar Öğünç. Pekün, whose documentaries and video installations have been shown and won awards in multiple countries, is currently working on her new project as a research fellow at Berlin University of the Arts. After her debut film, the documentary, Koleksiyoncu (The Collector), Esmer wrote and directed Oyun (The Play), which garnered Best Documentary Director Award at the Tribeca Film Festival. She then switched genres to fiction, picking up national and international awards for 11’e 10 Kala (10 to 11) and Gözetleme Kulesi (Watchtower), before making the Talinn Black Nights Best Screenplay winner, İşe Yarar Bir Şey (Something Useful), and most recently the documentary, Kraliçe Lear (Queen Lear), which premiered at the Sarajevo Film Festival. A long-time reporter, editor and columnist for several national newspapers and magazines in Turkey, Öğünç has published two short-story collections and a children’s book. Her short film, Evbark (Lost in Transition), which she wrote and directed, won Best Film in the fiction category at the 6th Atıf Yılmaz Short Film Festival.

Onur Saylak, Öykü Karayel and Tunç Şahin on Their Way to Antalya as Short Film Jury

The actor and director, Onur Saylak, the actress, Öykü Karayel, and the producer, director, screenwriter and academic, Tunç Şahin, will be picking the winners of the TL20,000 Best Film Award and TL10,000 Special Jury Prize in the National Short Film Competition. As an actor, Saylak has appeared in the feature films, Sonbahar (Autumn), Denizden Gelen (Brought by the Sea), Mavi Dalga (The Blue Wave) and Rüzgarın Hatırları (Memories of the Wind), in addition to numerous television series, among them Vatanım Sensin (Wounded Love), Çarpışma (Crash), Kuzgun (Raven) and Babil (The Choice). His stage performances include roles in Turkish productions of Ghetto, The Threepenny Opera, A Streetcar Named Desire and The Son. Besides acting, Saylak has also proved his credentials as a director, notably with the television series, Şahsiyet (Persona) and feature film, Daha (More). Karayel, a many times award-winning actress, has appeared in stage productions of Güzel Şeyler Bizim Tarafta (Good Things Apart), Killer Joe and Terk (Leaving), together with numerous television series, including Kuzey Güney, Kara Para Aşk (Black Money Love), Muhteşem Yüzyıl-Kösem (Magnificent Century: Kösem), Kalp Atışı (Heartbeat) and Bir Başkadır (Ethos). She has also earned big-screen credits for her performances in Bulantı (Nausea), Toz (Dust), İşe Yarar Bir Şey (Something Useful) and Put Şeylere (Put to the Things). Since beginning his filmmaking career as a producer in 2008, Şahin has worked on short and feature film projects alike. He has also written and directed two of his own films, first Karışık Kaset (Mixed Tape) and latterly İnsanlar İkiye Ayrılır (Two Types of People), which won Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress Awards at Antalya last year.

The much-anticipated short list of titles selected for the National Documentary and Short Film Competitions will be announced in the coming days.

In line with a Turkish government circular due to come into force on September 6, 2021, all Festival audiences will be required to present on admission to events either a Covid-19 vaccination certificate, or proof of having contracted the disease within the past six months, or a negative PCR test taken within the past 48 hours.

The 58th Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival is chaired by Mayor of Antalya, Muhittin Böcek, and executive directed by Cansel Tuncer. Ahmet Boyacıoğlu takes on the role of Festival director and Başak Emre of artistic director.

58th Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival

October 2-9, 2021