Boston Turkish Festival Film Competition: Heritage, Art & Shadows

FERIDUN. Directed by Utku Ali Güler. Short / 13 min. / 2025. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7 | 6:30 p.m.

Feridun, a reclusive man crippled by a fear of the outside world, lives a quiet, isolated life—until one day, he discovers a mysterious note inside his washing machine.

LIMINAL. Directed by Ege Yılmaz. Short / 12 min. / 2025. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7 | 6:30 p.m.

The outsider returns to her childhood house to check on her ailing father, but as tensions with her younger sister resurface, the past unravels, distorting time and memory in a place that no longer feels like home.

RETREAT / İnziva. Directed by Saim Güveloğlu. Short / 15 min. / 2025. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7 | 6:30 p.m.

Berna, hardened by life’s hardships, has grown suspicious and ruthless, haunted by a relentless sense of worthlessness. Seeking a brief escape, she rents every room in a secluded bungalow hotel. But solitude proves elusive—she soon realizes that no matter how far she runs, she cannot escape herself.

STEPS ACROSS BORDERS. Directed by Ahmet Lüleci. Doc. / 50 min. / 2026. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7 | 7:00 p.m. NON-COMPETITION

The legendary Stockton Folk Dance Camp’s 78th anniversary happens at the University of the Pacific, CA – USA. Over 200 people celebrates the country’s most powerful educational folk dance event for one last time in its only location for 78 years.

NİLGÜN. Directed by Tolga Oskar. Doc. / 55 min. / 2025. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7 | 8:00 p.m.

The documentary ‘Nilgün’ examines the 29-year life of Nilgün Marmara, a poet who left her mark on Turkish literature with her poems; her closeness to the master poets and writers of the period such as Cemal Süreya, İlhan Berk, Ece Ayhan, Edip Cansever; her unknown aspects; her place in Turkish literature; what she left behind; and her status as a poet..

SIYAH KALEM / Üstad Mehmed Siyah Kalem. Directed by Selin Aktaş Eyüboğlu, Murat K. Toy. Doc. / 34 min. / 2025. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7 | 9:00 p.m.

An artist whose name is not even fully known pushed the boundaries of imagination in 15th-century Central Asia by telling stories of jinn, giants, and demons, just to vanish right after. He left behind only scattered, fragmented paintings that seemed unrelated to each other. We do not know who he was, nor what he thought or intended to convey.