In a remote city in northeastern Turkey, a German film crew attempts to shoot a documentary while a Turkish surveillance agent deals with seemingly mysterious forces haunting his young daughter. As their stories intertwine, a complex net of conspiracy, paranoia and trauma unfolds. The film premiered at Berlinale ‘Encounters’ 2023.
“In my previous films I have dealt with the subject of trauma and its traces on the soul of both the individual and the collective. With In the Blind Spot it was interesting to focus on the perpetrators. The protagonist Zafer is part of an authoritarian system that operates with surveillance and fear, thereby creating paranoia. At one point, the system of paranoia turns against itself and self-destructs. This process is hastened by the ghosts of a dark and unresolved history. They are indestructible and will fight for their way until they are seen and heard. To do this, they have to leave the blind spot. The film explores the blind spot in the soul.” (A. Polat)
Sceneggiatura / Screenplay: Ayşe Polat
Fotografia / Photography: Patrick Orth
Montaggio / Editing: Serhad Mutlu, Jörg Volkmar
Musica / Music: Martin Rott, Matthias Wolf
Suono / Sound: Johannes Grehl, Jürgen Funk
Scenografia / Art Director: Osman Özcan
Costumi / Costume Designer: Ece Erol
Interpreti / Cast: Ahmet Varlı, Çağla Yurga, Nihan Okutucu, Tudan Ürper, Katja Bürkle, Aybi Era, Mutallip Müjdeci
Produzione / Produced by: mîtosfilm
Coproduzione / Co-produced by: PunktPunktPunkt Filmproduktion
Distribuzione internazionale / World Sales: ArtHood Entertainment
Ayşe Polat
The German-Kurdish director, screenwriter and producer Ayşe Polat was born in Malatya, Turkey and grew up in Hamburg, Germany. In 1999 she made her first feature film Tour Aboard (also presented in Trieste in 2002 as part of the homage ‘Oriental Moons in Almanya: Germany’s Turkish-German Cinema’). En Garde followed in 2004, which won two Silver Leopards for Best Film and Best Actress at Locarno IFF. She has directed several TV-movies and is currently working on her new feature film.
Selected filmography
1999 Auslandstournee (Tour Aboard) 2004 En garde; Premi / Awards: Locarno IFF – Miglior film, Migliore attrice / Best Film, Best Actress 2010 Luks Glück 2013 Die Erbin (The Heiress) 2016 Ötekiler (The Others) doc. 2023 Im toten Winkel (In the Blind Spot); Premi / Awards: Istanbul FF – Tulipano d’oro per il concorso nazionale, Premio FIPRESCI, Miglior montaggio, Migliore sceneggiatura / National Competition Golden Tulip, FIPRESCI Award, Best Editing, Best Screenplay
