23 March 2015
The Turkish movie “Çekmeceler” (Drawers), about a young woman taken to a hospital on the night of her 32nd birthday, became the top winner of this year's Nuremberg turkish-german film festival, its producers announced Monday.
Actress Nilufer Acikalin & Tilbe Saran, writer/director M.Caner Alper, producers Nurhan Ozenen & Bulut Reyhanoglu
“Çekmeceler,” co-directed by “Zenne Dancer” filmmakers M. Caner Alper and Mehmet Binay, won the best film and the best actress awards at the 20th edition of the annual Nuremberg festival, which wrapped up with an awards ceremony on Sunday.
The festival's best actress honor was split among the three female cast members of the film, billed as a controversial coming of age story that reveals the traumatic secrets buried deep within the soul of its leading character, Deniz, played by Ece Dizdar.
The six-member jury of the festival's feature film competition said in its award statement that actresses Tilbe Saran, who portrays Deniz's mother in “Çekmeceler,” and Nilüfer Açıkalın, who plays Deniz's stepmom, deserved equal praise with Dizdar for their acting performances.
The Nuremberg festival marked the first international outing for “Çekmeceler,” which premiered in February as part of this year's !f İstanbul International Independent Film Festival, and had its theatrical release on March 6.
A total of 39 titles by Turkish and German directors were in the running for awards at the festival's feature film competition. The 20th Nuremberg Turkish-German Film Festival took place March 13-22.