My Political Romance was shot three summers ago. Elena and me threw ourselves in the middle of the clashes that took place in Istanbul on a daily basis since president Erdogan launched his ambitious building project that would have entailed the demolition of Gezi park and the construction of a massive shopping center in place of the park. 9 people lost their lives and thousands got severely injured in the attempt of stopping the bulldozer from uprooting the trees of the only central park that is left in Istanbul. After the latest election, president Erdogan turned Turkish political system from a parliamentary government into a presidential one, granting him sweeping executive powers. The recently failed military coup reinforced his leadership even more. For Haluk, the protagonist of this film, life is getting more and more unbearable.
Haluk, 27, is a Turkish citizen who was never involved in the political affairs of his country, until the government decided to demolish Gezi park and replace it with a shopping center. He took his chance and joined the protests with his sister. They took up a new way of living in Istanbul, the way of the resistance.
Asude, 28, comes from a fundamentalist muslim background and she made her way into business thanks to Erdogan's politics and the economic growth. Nevertheless, she dislikes Erdogan's illiberal attitude.
Yunus, 27, is Kurdish and he has a problematic approach to the protests. He is setting his hopes on the secret agreement between Erdogan and the PKK. Erdogan is a better option than nationalists and secularists. Yunus is not happy to compromise on Kurdish rights though. The upcoming elections will leave everyone disappointed.
The abrupt upraising that filled the entire central square of Istanbul with gas, water, fire and rage caught my attention and admiration. My political drive and urge to be present in such an inspiring moment of change brought me there. I needed to see how that incredible engagement of such a diverse humanity was possible. Muslims, Secularist, Turkish and Kurdish people were standing together for the first time in Turkey. In a country where divisions are sharp, that was one of the biggest collective political experience in Turkey's history. I wanted to explore why they were there, or why they decided not to join. Beyond the huge crowd of Gezi park, I wanted to show the personal choice of someone who took the risk of getting shot by the police in the name of democracy. Nevertheless, I did not want to ignore the arguments of those who stood against this movement - or just wanted to belittle it.
All my characters belong to minorities in Turkey and they don't feel represented. They stand in between Europe and Asia, the big city and the countryside, secularism and Islam, where human rights are in danger and the "tyranny of the majority" is declaring Turkey's identity today.
I hope you enjoyed the film. Leave a comment to let me know what you think about it. Where would you stand in such a scenario?
Yours, Alessandro&Elena
