Millions of stories from Turkey panel in Berlin

On the occasion of the International Berlin Film Festival, also known as Berlinale, a panel titled "Millions of Stories from Turkey" was organized by the International Boğaziçi Cinema Foundation in Berlin with the support of TRT, the national public broadcaster of Turkey, and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism General Directorate of Cinema.

In the panel, the cultural richness and variety of stories that are provided by Turkey to film producers were expressed to Turkish and foreign film producers.

Film producer Timur Savcı said that Turkey has incredible stories that can be great sources for films thanks to its historical process and that Turkey has come a long way in the film and TV series industry recently.

Implying Turkish people should create awareness about it, he added: "When you look at Turkey, you can neither say East nor West. Turkey is Turkey and it is a country housing millions of varieties.

"We have Mawlana Jalaluddin Rumi, Atatürk and also Medmed II, known as Mehmed the Conqueror. When we look at the history, all the characters have very cinematographic and inspiring stories. We also have human stories as we still sustain neighborhoods. There are great pains for small things. There is unity and togetherness. No matter how global we become, we protect our authentic features," said the producer.

'It is very precious to add something to humanity'

Director Derviş Zaim said, "We are the heirs of a history and culture that spread to different geographies, featuring contradictions."

"It is very exciting that we can make films of the stories rising from Turkey together with other countries. It is something that should be supported. Adding something from us to humanity is very precious."

Indicating that the success of Turkish cinema shouldn't be evaluated by box office returns or Oscar awards, Zaim added: "Visibility is important. We should be visible, but this shouldn't be temporary. They will applaud you, but later you can be forgotten. The most important thing is that the base should be solid. Thus, the next things will feed on this base. Awards, awareness and interest of spectators will be an extension of it."

The panel hosted many Turkish and foreign filmmakers.