Recent high school graduate Yusuf is uncertain about his future in the provincial countryside. Writing poetry is his greatest passion and some of his poems are starting to be published in obscure literary journals. But for the time being, he continues working in his single mother’s village milk business, also with an uncertain future.
Up until now, Yusuf’s widowed mother Zehra has focused all her attention on her only child. Still a young and beautiful woman, Zehra is having a discreet relationship with the town station master. His mother’s affair, and his being named unfit for military service due to a childhood illness, make Yusuf even more anxious about making the sudden jump toward manhood.
Will young Yusuf be able to handle the changes in his peaceful existence? Can he survive on poetry and working alongside his mother in her small-time milk business? Or will he be forced to move to the big city or seek a job in one of the many factories threatening the unspoiled landscape?
Semih Kaplanoglu was born in 1963, in Izmir. He received BS in Cinema-Television from the Faculty of Fine Arts, Dokuz Eylül Universiy, Izmir in 1984.He worked as an Assistant Cameraman for award winning documentaries OLDHOUSES – OLDMASTERS: HOUSES OF THE WESTERN MEDITERRANEAN and MIMARSINAN by Süha Arin.
He was the scriptwriter and director of the 52 Episode TV serial SEHNAZ TANGO which was a prestigious work broadcast on Show TV and Inter Star TV Channels at the time. Semih Kaplanoglu’s debut AWAY FROM HOME (Herkes Kendi Evinde), apart from winning many awards, attended to many festivals around the world. The film received the Best Director Award in International Singapore Asia Film Festival and Best Film Award in International Istanbul and Ankara Film Festivals.
His second feature film ANGEL’S FALL (Melegin Düsüsü) has received a wider interest among international filmcritics and audience. After having World Premiere at the 55th Berlin Film Festival, the film still continues it’s journey among international festivals all around the world. The film has won The Best Film Award in both Nantes 3 Continents and Barcelona Independent Film Festivals. And the FIPRESCI Award has been given by the international jury in 24th International Istanbul Film Festival. The film, apart from Turkey, was released in Greece, Germany and Spain.
Semih Kaplanoglu, apart from being a director, wrote many articles based on plastic arts and cinema which were translated into foreign languages and published in such magazines and journals as Gergedan, Gösteri, Cumhuriyet, and Sanat Dünyamiz between 1987 and 2003. He also prepared the Icon Exhibit Catalog for the exhibition Iconoclasts by Erol Akyavas in the St. Petersburg Hermitage Museum in 1990. Between 1996–2000 he wrote a column entitled Karsilasmalar (Encounters) for Radikal Daily Newspaper.
2008 MILK (Süt) /// 2007 EGG (Yumurta) /// 2004 ANGEL’S FALL (Melegin Düsüsü) /// 2000 AWAY FROM HOME (Herkes Kendi Evinde)
AWARDS (A SELECTION): 2005 FIPRESCI Award – Istanbul International Film Festival for ANGEL’S FALL /// 2001 Best Director – Singapore International Film Festival for AWAY FROM HOME /// 2001 Best Film – Istanbul International Film Festival for AWAY FROM HOME
Yusuf / MELIH SELÇUK /// Zehra / BASAK KÖKLÜKAYA ///
Ali Hoca / RIZA AKIN /// Semra / SAADET ISIL AKSOY
DIRECTOR / SEMIH KAPLANOGLU /// SCREENPLAY / SEMIH KAPLANOGLU / ORÇUN KÖKSAL /// PRODUCER / SEMIH KAPLANOGLU /// CO-PRODUCERS / GUILLAUME DE SEILLE / BETTINA BROKEMPER / JOHANNES REXIN ///
CINEMATOGRAPHER / ÖZGÜR EKEN /// EDITOR / FRANÇOIS QUIQUERÉ /// ART DIRECTOR / NAZ ERAYDA /// A PRODUCTION OF KAPLAN FILM PRODUCTION /// IN CO-PRODUCTION WITH ARIZONA FILMS / HEIMATFILM ///
WITH SUPPORT FROM T.C. KÜLTÜR VE TURIZM BAKANLIGI (Turkish ministry of Culture) / CNC / FILMSTIFTUNG NRW / WCF / TIRE BELEDIYESI (Tire Municipality) / CINEFONDATION ATELIER
FORMAT / 35 mm / 1:1,85 / Colour / Dolby Digital / LENGTH 102 min. / LANGUAGE
Turkish / SUBTITLES English
