An Evaluation on Independent Cinema and Film Festivals
Film festivals, one of the most important platforms for the survival and development of independent cinema, have not been able to paint a very encouraging picture in our country in recent years. The intervention of politics in the field of cinema, the creation of manipulative headlines with controversial films, and the delay of politics in focusing on the main issue caused film festivals not to be organized. For example, last year, the Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival was canceled as a result of the negativities. The Bosphorus Film Festival was also shaken due to the problems experienced in previous years; However, fortunately, this festival could be held last year. While the Malatya Film Festival was progressing rapidly, it was disrupted and could not be held afterwards. So, what will be the end of this trend?
While festivals around the world, especially in the West, have become an important area shaping current agendas, the decrease in the number of festivals in our country is a remarkable situation. Just as we are on the threshold of the festive season, it is necessary to evaluate the general picture. In our country, the number of festivals where feature films can compete is quite low. Compared to the population and cinema potential, this number is quite insufficient. Considering Turkey’s geographical and cultural diversity, it is extremely important to increase film festivals of different textures. The sustainability of our cinema depends on the existence of these festivals. Because nowhere in the world has the cinema industry remained strong in regions where independent cinema is weak. From Iran to Korea, from the USA to France, from Russia to China, the cinema industry first manifests itself with independent films; then grows as the industry becomes more consolidated.
Independent Success Before Box Office Takeoff
For example, the period in which Turkish TV series gained great popularity internationally is closely related to the period popularly known as “New Turkish Cinema”, which took off in the 1990s and rose in the early 2000s. Just like, after our cinema rose in the 1950s and 60s, the country’s cinema tried to find its own texture with independent films in the 1970s. During this period, the elements that supported the industry financially and technically were TV series and commercial cinema. Considering this situation, the decrease or weakening of festivals in our country will have a direct negative impact on our cinema. What makes independent cinema free is that it can create an economic system within itself, without any commercial concerns. The director should not feel the pressure of money. In a sense, the economic system created by TV series and commercial cinema should be a shield for independent cinema. To ensure this, legal limits and practices are necessary. This is true all over the world.
Stamps Should Be Exclusive to Independent Cinema
Of course, there is a reason for making this warning. While all sectors are struggling in the face of inflation, the situation of independent filmmakers has now come to the point of looking for new ways. Although the supports of the Ministry of Culture and TRT have increased compared to the past, these supports cannot keep up with the pace of inflation. The cachets set in the industry do not match the realities of independent cinema. This is an issue that everyone knows but cannot be resolved on paper.
There is a neighborhood, there is a neighborhood
Another important issue is civil support. In fact, such support is quite limited in our country. It is extremely essential to increase institutional support, whether bourgeois or non-governmental organizations. This formula has not been sustainable anywhere in the world without civil support. A similar situation will occur in Turkey. However, unfortunately, one of the biggest problems of independent cinema and indirectly the cinema industry in our country is that civil support is concentrated in a certain ‘neighborhood’ and there is no such tradition in the other ‘neighborhood’.
