ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the contemporary cinema of Turkey from a social and political point of view maintaining a critical and analytical perspective. Recurring themes and trends, and the representations of ethnic and religious minorities, women and LGBTI individuals are highlighted within the context of collective and individual identity. Film criticism and scholarship; the masculine hegemony in the film industry; the ‘critical gaze’ of the state and its repercussions on the creativity of the artists; cinema beyond the nation-state boundaries; and the implications of transnational film-making are explored along with cinema by film-makers of Kurdish origin that has drawn considerable attention since the millennium. The distribution and reception of local films including the national film festivals concludes the chapter.
