WALKING ON FIRE

Director, producer, screenplay:
Yavuz Özkan

Cinematography: Pierre Novion, Ertunç Şenkay

Cast: Hülya Aksular, Yılmaz Zafer, Kürşat Alnıaçık, Semiha Berksoy, Erdoğan Akduman, Dancers of State Opera and Ballet of İstanbul

Score: Vedat Biçkin, Tuğrul Karataş

Financial Supporters: Ministry of Culture of Turkish Republic, Conseil de L’Europe EURIMAGES

Turkey – France – Germany Co-Production

 

Synopsis

With the decline of the Ottoman Empire, the struggle for the foundation of modern Turkey starts.

The war of independence against the enemies of the former empire becomes a hope for the demoralized nation in their search for liberty. While the nation rises out of the ashes of the destructed empire, the inpreventable surge towards secularism and the other reforms from equal rights for women to the establishment of national industry takes place.

After the foundation of modern Turkey, the nation starts to search for its own identity and its place among other nations. Meanwhile the multi-party system is adapted. While the multi-party system, the young republic gets stunned and soon flounders, and subsequently falls into political turmoil and the democratic system is suspended by coup d’Etat several times.

In the film, a ballet group stages an historical story. While this historical story provides the background, there is an intricately interwoven love triangle between the ballerina, director and dancer. The ever-rising tension in political, social and economic life in the background provides an interesting analogy with the ups and downs of the love affair.

This love affair and the chaotic events in the background take the spectators of the play to an imaginary journey full of emotions and reactions while they are watching the play.

Awards

28th ANTALYA GOLDEN ORANGE FILM FESTIVAL (1991)

Best Director

Best Cinematography

Best Laboratory

Best 2nd Film

Winner of People’s Jury Award

Çukurova Press Council Special Award