THE LONG WAY HOME
2013, Colour, Turkey, First Films World Competition
PRODUCTION TEAM
Director : Alphan Eseli
Screenwriter : Serdar Tantekin, Alphan E?eli
Cinematographer : Hayk Kirakosyan
Editor : Ömer Özyilmazel
Cast : Ugur Polat, Nergis Öztürk, Serdar Orçin
Music : Mihaly Vig
Film production and Sales : Öguz Peri, Bocek Yapim, Levent Mah, Calikusu Sok., 14, Levent, Istanbul (Turquie), tél.: (+90-212) 282 78 77, pelinkaya@bocekyapim.com.tr
SYNOPSIS
The Battle of Sar?kam?? was an engagement between the Russian and Ottoman empires during World War I. It took place from December 22, 1914 to January 17, 1915 as part of the Caucasus Campaign. The outcome was a Russian victory with the Ottomans losing territory and over 90,000 soldiers. THE LONG WAY HOME is set on the outskirts of Kars in Eastern Anatolia in the winter of 1915 and takes us to the immediate aftermath of the Battle of Sar?kam??. The land is a no-man’s-land, as the fighting has just ended but the larger conflict between the opposing empires is still ongoing. A disparate group of seven people are seeking to escape the war zone and find a safe path back home. All seven converge on an abandoned Armenian village in the face of a particularly harsh winter. Food is scarce and as days pass and the conditions get worse, conflicts escalate within the group. This is the other face of war, neither the glory of battle nor its horror, but the stuggle of civilians to survive its consequences, the indomitable human will to survive.
DIRECTOR
Born in Ankara, Turkey in 1973, Alphan E?eli moved to New York where he took his master's in filmmaking and began making music videos and commercials, for which he won a Crystal Apple Award. Returning to Turkey, he co-founded ISTANBUL '74 with Demet Müftüo?lu E?eli in 2009, and he helped create the Istanbul International Arts and Culture Festival. THE LONG WAY HOME is his directorial debut in feature films.