In person: Ҫağan Irmak, director
Hatice, an aspiring singer in a conservative small town, runs away to Istanbul in the 1970s, stealing from her sister Hanife both the dashing musician son of a local politician and Hanife’s poems, which Hatice transforms into hit songs. After forty years without contact, Hatice, now an aging diva showing early signs of Alzheimer’s disease, visits Hanife, who has become an embittered spinster, to make amends and ask for her help.
While scenes set in the p...
In person: Ҫağan Irmak, director
Hatice, an aspiring singer in a conservative small town, runs away to Istanbul in the 1970s, stealing from her sister Hanife both the dashing musician son of a local politician and Hanife’s poems, which Hatice transforms into hit songs. After forty years without contact, Hatice, now an aging diva showing early signs of Alzheimer’s disease, visits Hanife, who has become an embittered spinster, to make amends and ask for her help.
While scenes set in the past revel in nostalgia for 1970s kitsch, the sisters’ late-in-life reunion is a touching story of sacrifice, forgiveness, and the endurance of family bonds. (Dir.: Ҫağan Irmak, Turkey, 2014, 123 min., DCP, Turkish with English subtitles)
asia.si.edu/films
ABOUT THE SERIES
In 2015, the Freer debuts Close Up, an occasional series in which filmmakers present their work over the course of a weekend. For the inaugural edition, Ҫağan Irmak, one of Turkey’s most prolific and popular directors, shows his two most recent films, "Are We OK?" and "Whisper if I Forget."
Irmak makes films that are at once crowd-pleasing and thought-provoking. He is best known for the TV series "Cemberimde Gül Oya" (2004–05) and "Asmali Konak" (2002–04) and the hit films "Alone" (2008) and "My Father and My Son" (2005); the latter won Turkish Cinema Writers Association awards for best film, screenplay, and director.
This series is sponsored by Turkish Airlines. It is organized in collaboration with TAFF Films, Istanbul; and Seagull Films, New York.
