Croatian minority co-production of the production house 4Film and co-producer Anita Juka, the fiction feature Burning Days directed by Turkish director Emin Alper had its world premiere on Monday, 23rd May, in the section Un Certain Regard at the 75th Cannes Film Festival. The screening attended by the film’s authors and crew ended with a standing ovation from the audience.   

“The premiere went phenomenally. The audience gave us a ten-minute standing ovation, which shows just how much they liked the film. We are very happy that Croatian crew members were there with us, because this collaboration is also the first Turkish-Croatian film co-production. Croatia was the last to join our project financially, and we immediately clicked with 4Film. We share the same views about audiovisual production, about what a film should be and the kind of stories it should tell. Also, Croatian crew members have stayed friends and maintain contacts with the rest of the team, so I believe we have put together an excellent team," said Burning Days producer Nadir Öperli (Liman Film). 

The film was screened in a full auditorium at the Théâtre Claude Debussy, as part of Un Certain Regard, the second most important competition programme of the Cannes Film Festival. The film’s creative team attended the screening, including director Emin Alper, lead actors Selahattin Paşalı, Ekin Koç, Selin Yeninci and others, along with Croatian co-producer Anita Juka, associate producer Laura Sinovčić and second camera and steadycam operator Goran Mećava. The Cannes audience greeted the film with a huge applause and standing ovation.

“This ambitious co-production has brought together excellent film workers from all over Europe – it has given us a chance to collaborate with film professionals from France, Germany, the Netherlands, Greece and, of course, Turkey. The results are obvious and yesterday’s reactions from the audience confirm that. Emin Apler is a true visionary, he has an impressive list of accomplishments under his belt, but I believe Burning Days is his most remarkable feat to date. Collaborating on this film was a unique experience and honour,” said Anita Juka after the premiere.     

Burning Days is a fiction feature produced by Turkish company Liman Film (Nadir Öperli), created in co-production with France (Laurent Lavole, Gloria Films Production), Germany (Viola Fügen, The Match Factory Productions), the Netherlands (Stienette Bosklopper, Circe Films), Greece (Yorgos Tsourgiannis, Horsefly Films) and Croatia (Anita Juka, 4Film). The film’s sales representative is The Match Factory. 

Croatian crew members on the project, alongside Anita Juka, Laura Sinovčić and Goran Mećava, include Paulina Križić (associate producer), Krešimir Rodić (production sound mixer) and Daniel Žuvela (boom operator).

The film centres on a young and idealistic Emre who assumes the position of state prosecutor in a small Turkish town that has been plagued by water shortages for some time. As local elections draw closer, Emre faces the complexities of small-town politics in a place where everyone is living out their own version of truth.

In addition to Burning Days, Croatian minority co-production Butterfly Vision, directed by Ukrainian director Maksym Nakonechnyi, will have its world premiere in Cannes on Wednesday, 25th May. This fiction feature is also a 4Film co-production.   

Cover photographs: world premiere of Burning Days at the 75th Cannes Film Festival