"All sorts of minorities are coming out of the closet now, the Pandora's box has been opened," Binay noted. A recent Amnesty International report documented ongoing hate crimes, along with brutality and discrimination by the government and police.Ĭo-director Binay believes the success of Zenne Dancer signals changes in Turkish society. A few years ago such gatherings were invariably broken up by the police. Last year, thousands attended the country's largest gay pride march in Istanbul. The success of Zenne Dancer is seen as an indication of wider changes towards Turkey's homosexuals. There are always some male couples who fall in love with one another, this is part of nature,' " the man explained, "and his covered wife was nodding and she was saying, 'Yes this true.' And I was prejudiced against them, when I was looking at them, I really felt ashamed." And he said, 'I got pigeons and I breed them, and I raise them.
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And at the end the gentleman wanted to say something, and we said please go ahead. And I always wondered what they would say about it. "In Bursa there was an older couple, the lady was covered, veiled. Still, Binay admits he had concerns about the reception he and his film would receive in provincial cities, like Bursa, which have a reputation of being religiously conservative. The pro-Islamic daily Akit called the film "homosexual propaganda" by gays seeking to "legitimize perversion by art."īut according to Binay, the criticism only generated more interest in the film. Zenne Dancer has not been without controversy. She feels sure there will be many more films about this issue. She explained that it is too difficult to tell such stories in Turkey, but said the country is definitely changing. One woman said it is a very brave film, because for the first time a taboo subject has been made into a movie. Audience members are showing appreciation of the film. In its third week at an Istanbul cinema, Zenne Dancer is holding its own against Turkish and U.S. Due to the media attention, Zenne Dancer broke out of the festival circuit and into the mainstream - a rare achievement for a small independent movie. So, I believe if you tell your story right, people are ready to hear the story you tell them."Īt Turkey's most prestigious film festival, the Antalya Golden Orange, Zenne Dancer won five major awards and received widespread critical acclaim. "And we received very positive and encouraging feedback from them. "We tried reaching people in the streets, people who have kids or colleagues or school friends who are a bit different than themselves, we tried to show them, that there are different identities in society," Binay said. While Zenne Dancer is in part aimed at Turkey's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, co-director Binay says they have far wider goals for the film.
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It portrays their conflicting experiences of declaring their sexuality to their family and close friends. Under the banner "honesty can kill," the film explores the fictitious relationship of Yildiz and the Zenne dancer. And I went to my partner Mehmet and we discussed the possibility of combining the two characters in a feature film," explained Alper.
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"One night we came across a 'Zenne dancer', a male belly dancer, and we were working with him to make a documentary, and our close friend was shot dead by his own father. According to Alper, until the murder they had no plans to make a feature film. Slain Yildiz was a close friend of the co-directors Caner Alper and Mehmet Binay. Zenne Dancer is inspired by the true story of a gay man, Ahmet Yildiz, who police suspect was murdered by his father in 2008, in what the media describes as Turkey's first gay "honor killing." Its haunting soundtrack can be heard in cinemas across Turkey, as Zenne Dancer continues to enjoy box office success.
#TURKISH GAY MEN VIDEO MOVIE#
A controversial and groundbreaking film has hit movie theater screens in Turkey.