Dormitory

Yurt (Dormitory), written and directed by Nehir Tuna, is a Turkish film, shot in black and white, about fourteen year old Ahmet, sent by his father to a religious dormitory while continuing to attend a secular state high school by day, hiding where he lives from his classmates. Director Nehir Tuna draws on his own five years in a religious boarding school for this semi-autobiographical story, noting that his own discovery of cinema dates back to that same period. The film had its world premiere in the Orizzonti section of the 80th Venice Film Festival, where it won Best Screenplay; it also won the Golden Tulip at the Istanbul Film Festival and Best Director at the Saint-Jean-de-Luz Film Festival. Who it's for: anyone curious about a black and white Turkish film, drawn from the director's own boarding school experience, following a boy caught between secular and religious life in 1990s Turkey, and awarded at Venice. Who it's not for: those wanting a light, comfortable viewing experience, since the film intensely portrays a child's tense search for belonging.