Tomris Giritlioğlu (1955 -   )

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Tomris Giritlioğlu was born in Konya in 1955. He completed his primary, secondary and high school education at TED Ankara College. Later, he graduated from the Department of English Linguistics at Hacettepe University. Giritlioğlu, who worked as a translator at TRT in 1974, took TRT's exams because he wanted to work in the media field. Giritlioğlu, who passed the exam, worked as Neslihan Gence's assistant. He left his job as an assistant and moved to the Documentary Programs Directorate. Giritlioğlu,  He directed the documentaries “From Tablet to Cassette” (1986), “Ahmet Muhip Dranas” (1985) and “Yesterday, Today” (1986). Giritlioğlu is the first director to shoot a film with the support of TRT.

Giritlioğlu was the director of the documentary "İşte Beyoğlu" (1987), produced by Canan Evcimen. Giritlioğlu, who made many documentaries at the beginning of his career, shot the film "Kantodan Tangoya" (1989), for which he wrote the script with Ziya Öztan. Giritlioğlu's first feature film, "The Other Side of the Water", was released to the audience in 1991. Influenced by many poets such as Cemil Meriç and Ahmet Hamdi Tanpınar, Giritlioğlu wrote “Summer Rain” (1994) and “80. He shot the movies "Step" (1995). During his time working at TRT, Giritlioğlu stayed away from commercial concerns and made films that would highlight his own cinema. Giritlioğlu, who is originally from Antakya, dealt with these issues in his films because he grew up in a multicultural environment and saw himself as a minority in society. He particularly focused on these issues in his films "Suyun Öte Yanı" (1991), "Salkım Hanım'ın Taneleri" (1999) and "Güç Santıcı" (2009). 

 

Screenwriter Filmography

Summer Rain, 1993, Director: Tomris Giritlioğlu, Producer: Nilgün Sağyaşar, Screenplay: Ümit Ünal, Tomris Giritlioğlu (adapted from Ahmet Hamdi Tanpınar's novel of the same name), Director of photography: Yavuz Türkeri, Music: Münir Nurettin Beken, Actors: Ahmet Leventoğlu , Pınarcık Akerman, Meral Çetinkaya, Müge Akyamaç, Selçuk Method, Suna Selen, Ayla Algan, Leman Sam, Cezmi Baskin, Mehmet Güleryüz, Olgun Şimşek, Fikret Kuşkan, Production Company: TRT.

From Kanto to Tango, 1989, Director: Tomris Giritlioğlu, Producer: Vehbi Okur, Screenplay: Ziya Öztan, Tomris Giritlioğlu, Actors: Aytaç Arman, Serap Aksoy, Cezmi Baskin, Koray Ergun, Production Company: TRT.

 

Awards: 

The Other Side of the Water (1991)

4th Ankara Film Festival (1992) “2nd Best Film” “Best Actress” (Meral Çetinkaya)

11th International Istanbul Festival (1992) “Best Director”, “Special Jury Award”

Summer Rain (1993)

SİYAD (Cinema Writers Association) (1995) “3rd Best Film” “Best Actress” (Pıtırcık Akerman), “Best Supporting Actor” (Selçuk Method)

80th Step (1995)

8th Ankara International Film Festival (1996) "Special Award of the Board of Selection, "Best Supporting Actress"

15th International Istanbul Film Festival (1996) “Best Film”, “Best Director”

Cologne 6th Turkish Film Festival (1996) “Best Actress” (Zuhal Olcay)

SİYAD (1997) “5th Best Film”, “Best Actress” (Zuhal Olcay)

Salkım Hanım's Grains (1999)

36th Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival, (1999), “Best Film Award”, “Best Actor” (Uğur Polat), “Best Music” - Tamer Çıray, “Best Editing” (Mevlüt Koçak), “ “Best Art Director” - Mustafa Ziya Ülkenciler

12th Ankara International Film Festival, (2000), “Mahmut Tali Öngören Special Award” (Tomris Giritlioğlu), “Best Actor” (Kamran Usluer), “Onat Kutlar Best Screenwriter” - Etyen Mahçupyan, “Best Art Director” (Mustafa Ziya Ülkenciler), “Best Original Music” (Tamer Çıray)

19th International Istanbul Film Festival, (2000), “Best Actor” (Güven Kıraç)

21st Siyad Turkish Cinema Awards, (1999), “Best Music” (Tamer Çıray)

11th Orhan Arıburnu Awards, (2000), Hülya Koçyiğit Special Jury Award (Tomris Giritlioğlu)

Sadri Alışık Theater and Cinema Actor Awards, (2000), “Best Supporting Actor” (Murat Daltaban)

 

Source

Evren, M. Burçak. (2014). 100 Years of Turkish Cinema. T.R. Culture and Tourism Ministry.

Fontini, Pınar. (2017). Being a Female Director in Turkey Between 1990-2000. Marmara University Social Sciences Institute Master's Thesis. Istanbul. 

Sekmeç, A. Can (2015). Female Directors in Turkish Cinema. Istanbul: ANSET.

Öztürk, S. Ruken. (2004). The "Feminine" Face of Cinema: Female Directors in Turkey. Istanbul: Om Publishing House.