Borderlines FIlm Festival
*

Crossing The Bridge:
The Sound of Istanbul (PG)

Director: Faith Akin
Starring: Aynur, Selim Sesler, Muzeyyen Senar
Turkey/Germany, 2004, 1 hour 32 minutes, subtitles

A fascinating journey through the music of Istanbul, a city of female rappers and Turkish hip-hop, electronica and grunge rock, as much as gypsy, Kurdish and traditional Turkish music. Filled with informative interviews with a wide variety of musicians, there are also some fabulous performances from everybody from the hugely popular Sezen Aksu (who mixes pop with traditional Turkish music) to Kurdish singer Anyar and 86 year old diva, Muzeyyen Senar. A beautifully filmed and well paced portrait of the cultural life of the city that will be enjoyed not only by music fans but by anyone remotely interested in contemporary Turkey. East not only meets West but takes it on, tunes it up, and spits it out.

“In order to understand a place’s culture you have to listen to the music they make.” Confucius

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