- A municipality in southern Turkey on Friday decided to discontinue a 60-year-old film festival.
- The Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival, which was planned to run from October 7 to 14, has been canceled.
- Following another rejection from the event, the city on Friday canceled the entire festival.
Following a disagreement over a political documentary, a municipality in southern Turkey on Friday decided to discontinue a 60-year-old film festival.
The Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival, which was planned to run from October 7 to 14, has been canceled, the city’s mayor Muhittin Bocek regretfully said in a post on X.
Turkish film festival
The most renowned film festival in Turkey pulled the documentary “Kanun Hukmu” or “Decree” last week. It is about a doctor and a teacher who was fired from their government employment following a failed coup attempt in Turkey in 2016.
After numerous directors withdrew their films from the festival and jury members announced their resignations in protest of censorship and threats to artistic expression, the festival reversed its decision on Thursday.
On Thursday, the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism withdrew its sponsorship of the festival, accusing the organizers of enabling “terror propaganda.” Following another rejection from the event, the city on Friday canceled the entire festival.
The documentary’s director, Nejla Demirci, refuted the government’s claim that it was propaganda by stating that none of the people it showed had ever been found guilty of a crime.
The administration fired more than 125,000 state employees after the attempted coup, claiming they were involved in the coup, and justified the action as being required for national security. Critics said that the failed putsch was merely a cover for the Turkish government to stifle opposition.
