İstanbul Kurdish Film Festival initiated by Mesopotamia Cinema Initiative available until March 10, kicked off in Kenter Theater in Harbiye. People's Democratic Congress (HDK) Co chair and HDP Deputy Gülistan Kılıç Koçyiğit, HDK Co-spokesperson Sedat Şenoğlu, Republican People's Party (CHP) Deputy Sezgin Tanrıkulu, writer Faik Bulut, Human's Rights Association (İHD) Co-chair Eren Keskin and hundreds of art lovers attended the festival.

 

İlhan Bakır made the opening speech. Bakır who underlined that as a society people are going through a rough time, said: "As a society, we are going through hell. It's a process where the smile on  people's faces fades away. If a society has lost its smile, then that society has become uninhabitable. Charlie Chaplin says, ' The day without a laughter is not a good day'.  That's why we say laughter is a revolutionary act. Because the expressions in our face are the reflection of society."

 

Bakır continued: "We will be responding to this oppressive period as Kurdish artists, if we produce more.We are face to face with a policy that finds films dangerous.We salut Leyla and all hunger strikers who are resisting as a responce to these policies. As Kurdish artists, we will resist with our art against this monistic mentality."

 

33 films and documentaries will be available in the festival that will last until March 10. Director Hüseyin Tabak's 'Legend of the Ugly King', Director Sehîm Ömer Kalîfa's 'Zagros', Director Hüseyin Hasan's 'Reşeba', Director Ender Özkahraman's 'A hard decision', Director Veysi Altay's 'Bîr' (Well) will be amongst them as well as films and documentaries shot by Rojava Fim Commune. The films and documentaries will be screened at Mezopotamya Cinema Hall located in Beyoğlu.