Dûr

In the deep brown eyes of the elderly inhabitants of a remote Turkish village, only the past gleams. No one is anticipating a glorious future anymore, since the children and grandchildren have moved to Europe in great masses. The few sounds that still resound in the village come from the old shepherd strolling around with his flock, a man chopping wood and his wife who grumbles at him. Most villagers spend their days around the house in complete silence. Only when they tell anecdotes about the past and sing songs do these senior citizens sparkle again. is a melancholy journey across Turkey and Europe by director Kazim Öz. After he has patiently and affectionately captured the confusing impressions of his childhood village, he turns to the former villagers who have emigrated to Europe. When he shows them the footage of their ex-neighbours and fellow-villagers, it turns out that they miss their place of birth in heart and soul. In a series of scenes in which the camera circles around its subject and sticks to it, Öz shows the strength that both the villagers and ex-villagers draw from their melancholy, self-invented songs. In the process, he eventually manages to interpret his own memories and nostalgia.