Motherland by Senem Tüzen in La Biennale

The National Union of Italian Film Critics and La Biennale di Venezia have unveiled the line-up for the 30th International Film Critics’ Week. The independent section of the 72nd Venice International Film Festival will take place from 2 to 12th September. The 2015 line-up includes a selection of seven first time director’s full-length films from all over the world plus three special events.

Actresses Nihal Koldaş (L) and Esra Bezen Bilgin are shown in a scene from “Motherland,” which will premiere at the 72nd Venice Film Festival.

Mavi Boncuk |

In Competition

Ana Yurdu / Motherland by Senem Tüzen (Turkey, Greece)[1]
Banat (Il viaggio) by Adriano Valerio (Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Macedonia)
Kalo Pothi / The Black Hen by Min Bahadur Bham (Nepal, France. Germany)
Light Years by Esther May Campbell (United Kingdom)
Montanha by João Salaviza (Portugal, France)
The return by Green Zeng (Singapore)
Tanna by Martin Butler and Bentley Dean (Australia, Vanuatu)

[1] Motherland (2016)  Ana Yurdu 94 minutes Dir. Scr. : Senem Tüzen
CAST:Esra Bezen Bilgin, Nihal Koldaş, Fatma Kısa, Semih Aydın
PRODUCERS: Olena Yershova, Adam Isenberg, Senem Tüzen
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Vedat Özdemir
EDITING: Adam Isenberg, Senem Tüzen, Yorgos Mavropsaridis
CO-PRODUCERS: Zela Film 2|35 

*WORLD PREMIERE AT THE 72ND VENICE FILM FESTIVAL, CRITICS' WEEK, SEPTEMBER 2015* 

Nesrin is an urban, upper–middle class woman recovering from a divorce. She’s quit her office job, abandoned her house in Istanbul, and come to the village house of her deceased grandmother to finish a novel and live out her childhood dream of being a writer. When her conservative and increasingly unhinged mother turns up uninvited and refuses to leave, Nesrin’s writing stalls and her fantasies of village life turn bitter as the two are forced to confront the darker corners of each other’s inner worlds. 

Motherland (Ana Yurdu) is a feature film with an original script by the director Senem Tüzen. The project has support for both development and production from the Turkish Ministry of Culture. Juries awarded it "Best Project" at the Istanbul - Meetings On The Bridge, Thessaloniki Crossroads, and Connecting Cottbus co-production markets. It also participated in the !F-Sundance ScreenWriter's Lab. 

anayurdu.com

Senem Tüzen

Biography:
Born in Ankara in 1980, Senem Tüzen holds a degree in cinema and television from Mimar Sinan Fine Arts Academy, Istanbul. Her first feature film MOTHERLAND, which has been supported by the Ministry of Culture's Project Development Fund, has participated recently in the !F-Sundance Screenwriter's Lab.

Filmography:

Milk and Chocolate (Süt ve Çikolata) - 2008
20 minutes, Digital, color;
Turkish with English subtitles


Directed by Senem Tüzen
Screenplay by Senem Tüzen
Cinematography by Senem Tüzen
Edited by Senem Tüzen
Featuring Aysel Gedik, Mihriman Özdemir, Emine Aksoy, Fatma Doygun, Fatma Sabanlı, Ahmet Açıkel, Savaş Uyanıker, Betül Baysal, Deniz Atalay, Habibe Doygun

In her dream her father is stroking her hair. She awakes to a hard day. Her mother's milk has dried up and her young brother is sick. She needs to go get some milk.This is the story of Emine, set somewhere between a village and a town, herself between childhood and womanhood.

FESTIVALS-AWARDS

2008    Ifsak Film Festival, Best Short Fiction Film.
2008    Izmit Short Film Festival Special Jury Award 2008 (Turkey)
2008    41. Siyad Turkish Cinema Awards Best Short Film Nominee, Akbank Short Film Festival (Turkey)
2008    Golden Apricot Film Festival.
2008    Munich Film Festival (Germany)
2009    Paris Cinema International Film Festival (France)
2009    Middle East International Film Festival
2009    International Filmmor Women’s Film Festival (Turkey)
2009    Flying Broom International Women's Film Festival.
2009    Cyprus International Short Film Festival
2009    Ankara International Short Film Festival (Turkey)
2009    International Labor Film, Film Festival

Unus Mundus - 2007
Rats - 2005

Ali's Dream - 2004