2025 İstanbul Film Festival Highlights

This Year’s Favorites: Documentaries

The Documentary Generation section of the Istanbul Film Festival brings together films that address diverse and pressing contemporary issues, highlighting social transformations and portraying reality through unconventional narrative forms. Covering topics such as politics, music, photography, family relationships, society, architecture, radio, and human rights, this selection offers a compelling and distinctive perspective.

Köln 75 / Germany, Poland, Belgium

At the opening gala of the Istanbul Film Festival, cinephiles will be treated to Köln 75, directed by Ido Fluk, which had its premiere as a special screening at the Berlin Film Festival. The film tells the behind-the-scenes story of Keith Jarrett’s iconic 1975 Cologne concert, brought to life through the extraordinary efforts of a young high school student, Vera Brandes. Depicting the making of The Köln Concert—one of the best-selling albums in jazz history—the film will be screened with the attendance of the crew. The opening night will serve as a tribute to this landmark musical event on its 50th anniversary.

Selections by Asgari, Pereira, Premo, and Veiel

Iranian director Ali Asgari’s autobiographical documentary Higher than Acidic Clouds—winner of the Best Documentary Award in the Envision section at IDFA—joins the standout selections in this year’s documentary lineup. Other remarkable entries include:

Juanjo Pereira’s Under the Flags, The Sun, recipient of the 2025 FIPRESCI Award in Berlin; Michael Premo’s Homegrown, offering a layered look into 21st-century U.S. politics; Andres Veiel’s Riefenstahl, which took home the 2025 Dublin Best Documentary Award.

Films of the Festival Visiting Turkey

Tolga Karaçelik’s new film The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer, which had its world premiere in the Spotlight Narrative section of the Tribeca Film Festival, was among the festival’s highlights. The film won the 2024 Tribeca (USA) Audience Award – Narrative Second Place. American actor and director Steve Buscemi stars in the leading role.

Iranian filmmaker Alireza Khatami’s The Things You Kill, awarded the 2025 Sundance Directing Award (World Cinema Dramatic), makes an impression with a stellar cast: Ekin Koç, Erkan Kolçak Köstendil, Hazar Ergüçlü, and Ercan Kesal. Also drawing attention is Mehmet Akif Büyükatalay’s Hysteria, which premiered at the Berlin Film Festival. The film opens with the making of a provocative movie about the 1990s arson attacks on immigrants’ homes in Germany, laying bare the disturbing hypocrisies around racism and immigration.

In Pursuit of Haugerud: Screening for the First Time in Turkey

Six feature films by celebrated Norwegian director Dag Johan Haugerud will screen in Turkey for the first time. Known for his actor-focused, dialogue-driven cinema, Haugerud will present his acclaimed trilogy Sex, Love, and Dreams—all awarded at the Berlin Film Festival with Golden Bear and FIPRESCI honors. Other highlights include I Belong, Beware of Children, and The Light from the Chocolate Factory. Haugerud will also participate in an audience Q&A during the festival.

Festival Highlights

2073 – UK / Dir. Asif Kapadia

Described as a “true science fiction,” 2073 premiered in Venice and explores a dystopian future shaped by past crises—from 9/11 and the 2008 financial collapse to climate disasters and Silicon Valley power. Blending real interviews with speculative fiction, Kapadia paints a chilling vision of what’s to come.

When Fall is Coming – France / Dir. François Ozon

Set in rural Burgundy, Ozon’s award-winning family drama follows Michelle, a retired grandmother spiraling into depression after being legally banned from seeing her granddaughter. Honors include Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Performance at San Sebastian 2024 and Best Actress at the 2025 Césars.

The Last Show Girl – USA / Dir. Gia Coppola

Featuring Pamela Anderson in a widely praised performance, this Las Vegas-set drama has won multiple awards across San Sebastian, Denver, and Las Vegas. Anderson stars as Shelly, a showgirl reflecting on a life on stage as it begins to fade.

Mr. K – Netherlands, Belgium, Norway / Dir. Tallulah H. Schwab

A surreal Kafkaesque journey unfolds as a magician becomes trapped in a hotel maze teeming with bizarre characters. The film earned Best Fantasy Feature at Imagine Fantastic (Netherlands) and Best Costume at Isla Calavera (Spain).

Loveable (My Beloved) – Norway / Dir. Lilja Ingolfsdottir

This deeply personal portrait of Maria, a mother whose marriage begins to disintegrate, earned accolades including Karlovy Vary Best Actress, Reykjavik Best Performance, and the Les Arcs Grand Jury Prize.

The New Year That Never Came – Romania / Dir. Bogdan Mureşanu

The New Year That Never Came, the directorial debut of screenwriter Bogdan Mureşanu, is set in December 1989. As protests erupt across the country, year-end television programs continue to glorify the collapsing communist regime and its leader, Ceaușescu.

Amid this chaos, the film follows a young actress eager to rise to fame, two young men ready to flee the country at any moment, a woman on the verge of personal ruin, and a child who sends a strange letter to Santa Claus. The paths of these vastly different characters intersect in unexpected ways and at unexpected moments. The film received the Best Film – Orizzonti and FIPRESCI Prize – Orizzonti awards at the 2024 Venice Film Festival, along with a Special Mention for Cinematography, and the Best Film award at the 2024 Cairo International Film Festival.

Black Dog – China / Dir. Guan Hu

Director Guan Hu’s film Black Dog, which seeks to answer the question, “What is the force that keeps these people going on their own, that helps them survive?”, tells the story of an unexpected bond between Lang—newly released from prison—and a black dog. The film has received numerous accolades, including the 2024 Cannes Un Certain Regard Award, the Palm Dog Grand Jury Prize, the 2024 Warsaw Best Film – Crème de la Crème, the NETPAC Award for Best Asia-Pacific Film, and Best Director and Best Cinematography at the 2024 Valladolid Film Festival.

What Marielle Knows (I Know What the Fuck You’re Doing) – Germany / Dir. Frédéric Hambalek

Director Frédéric Hambalek’s film What Marielle Knows, which received a Special Mention from the Art Cinema Association at the 2025 Berlin Film Festival, centers on Marielle, the daughter of seemingly perfect couple Julia and Tobias. When the couple realizes that their daughter is telepathic—able to see and hear everything they do—they are forced to confront increasingly strange and unexpected problems as their orderly life begins to unravel and their lies come to light. Described by The Hollywood Reporter as “the kind of film Yorgos Lanthimos might have made if he co-directed with M. Night Shyamalan,” it stands out as one of the festival’s most intriguing selections.

The Message – Argentina, Spain, Uruguay / Dir. Iván Fund

A curious trio travels along the dusty village roads of Argentina: a little girl who can communicate with animals, a woman who conveys the messages to those seeking fortune readings, and a man who manages the finances. The Message is a film that weaves elements of magical realism into its striking black-and-white visuals, creating an atmosphere that feels both familiar and surreal. It offers audiences an emotional, spiritual, and deeply human journey. “Childhood is a beginning filled with dreams, but those dreams eventually fall apart. Adults can no longer perform magic,” says director and screenwriter Iván Fund, reflecting on the idea behind The Message. The film returned from Berlin with the Jury Prize.

In Short…

• Zuhal Olcay receives the Cinema Honor Award; Gülin Üstün is honored with the Labor Award.
• Screenings will take place in 7 theaters across Istanbul, including Beyoğlu Atlas and Kadıköy Cinema.
• The festival hosts three official competitions: Golden Tulip, Short Film, and New Views.
• Meetings on the Bridge, April 15–17, connects Turkish filmmakers with international professionals.
• The OGM Pictures First Film Incentive Award will be granted as part of the 20th Meetings on the Bridge.
• İKSV Alt Kat will organize stop-motion animation workshops for youth aged 14–19.
• Tickets available on Passo. Prices range from 240–345 TL.
• Students: 30 TL (Eczacıbaşı Young Ticket)
• Aged 65+: 25% discount for all sessions