Mark Campbell
Medya News in partnership with the Global Kurdish Film Festival had the honour and pleasure to speak to German film maker and director Dirk Schäfer about his beautiful new film, The Bachelor House, (Bekar Evi) showing at the Global Kurdish Film Festival until the 27th April.
An extraordinary, beautiful, intimate documentary film about 7 Kurdish men living very closely together in a run down flat in Istanbul. They have travelled from Kurdistan to Istanbul for work in the construction sites, dishwashing, selling street food and selling toys on the streets of the cosmopolitan city. Each with their own extraordinary stories to tell, we are introduced to Lokman, Haco, Cobbar, Miro, Azad, Egid and Ikram and very intimately, follow their lives in the two week period before they are to return to Kurdistan for the religious holiday of Eid.
The film intimately smashes the sterotypical view in Turkey of Kurdish men and their ‘macho’ reputations and very naturally shows the vulnerable, sensitive sides to the male characters who struggle against the discrimination they are subjected to as they face their daily hardships with determination, humour and spirit of comradery, mutual respect and support.
Schäfer is apparently the first and only non Kurdish German film maker to have a film shown at the Kurdish Film Festival, which he humbly accepts as a great honour but you can absolutely see why his film was accepted for the festival, as you would imagine that the film was made by a Kurdish film maker, such is the intimacy, trust and comfort by which the 7 men (and one stunning Van cat) accept the camera into their private lives. Just extraordinary.
Bekar Evi or The Bachelor House is available to watch until the 27th April at the Global Kurdish Film Festival by visiting their site which resembles a ‘Kurdish Netflix’ and simply by signing in you are given access to over 100 titles of Kurdish films.
The 12th London Kurdish Film Festival have launched the official festival platform of the Global Kurdish Film Festival on the 16th April. Head over now to and sign up with your name and email address to access the full programme of films. They have over 100 titles that you will be able to access completely free of charge. All films will be playable from the 16th – 27th of April 2021.
Before you watch the rest of the films, please first take time to enjoy Dirk Schäfer’s extraordinary achievement in The Bachelor House or Bekar Evi.
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