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Yeni Bir Yurt Edinmek [Settling in a New Land] Film at the Ottoman Bank Museum
 Under the theme “Social Memory/ Documentary Film,” the Ottoman Bank Museum is showing the Turkish documentary Yeni Bir Yurt Edinmek [Settling in a New Land]on Thursday, May 25, at 7:00 p.m. Directed by Enis Rıza, the film tells the story of the forced migration of the Anatolian Greeks living in Kayaköy/Fethiye (Levissi/Makri), in southeastern Turkey, to Nea Makri in Greece. Following the screening, Enis Rıza will conduct a discussion entitled “The Transforming Impact of the Documentary.”
In his film Ayrılığın Yurdu... Hüzün [Land of Exile...Sadness], the director had focused on the forced migration of Greeks from Turkey to Greece from the standpoint of old Makri and witnesses of the population exchange there. Screenings were then organized in Nea Makri for first, second and third generation settlers. This documentary retraces the population exchange from the perspective of the inhabitants of Nea Makri – the most resolute “freedom fighters” – and describes the difficulties they experienced when settling into their new homes.
The Museum's film program is prepared in collaboration with the Documentary Filmmakers Association (BSB) and offers a film, complemented by a discussion, on a different theme every week Screenings are held free of charge but reservations must be made.
Yeni Bir Yurt Edinmek
Director: Enis Rıza Turkey / 2006
Running time: 60 min.
Discussion: Enis Rıza: The Transforming Impact of the Documentary |
Enis Rıza
Rıza was born in 1948. Throughout his high school and university years, he showed a keen interest in photography and drama. In 1969, he began working on short films and documentaries, and took part in the “Young Cinema” movement. In subsequent years, he was active in public broadcasting in addition to making documentaries. With his “oral history” research, he concentrated, in both theory and practice, on migration, street children and other social history topics. The “oral history and documentary workshops” he conducted with his crew in different regions of Turkey were part of this process. In 1996, he was among the active founders of the Documentary Filmmakers Association and became its spokesman and chair of the board of directors. His films are shown in festivals in Turkey and abroad, private organizations and on television. Enis Rıza currently teaches documentary film at Galatasaray and Marmara Universities, and continues to make documentaries.
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Documentary Filmmakers Association (BSB) started out as a civil platform and began its structuring process following the National Conference held in March 1997. Today it continues its activities as an association with professional status, certified by the Ministry of Culture. Starting with Istanbul, Ankara, Eskisehir and Izmir, BSB is in contact with documentary filmmakers throughout Turkey. Convinced that civil culture is crucial in designing better social futures and filling the blanks of collective social memory, the Documentary Filmmakers Association considers these functions complementary to the creative aspect of documentary filmmaking. BSB creates and promotes screening spaces other than television, organizes and participates in film festivals all over Turkey and offers film screenings with discussions, especially in universities. |
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