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THE PILLAR OF SALT

by Burak Çevik

synopsis

A pregnant young woman who lives in a sort of cave is looking for her vanished sister, yet this plot summary hardly does justice to the charm, richness and radical nature of Burak Çevik’s first feature – all of which a result of the liberties he takes in creating an extravagant cinematic world to tell this story. The protagonist leaves her almost fairytale-like cave to set out across a river, taking up her sister’s trail. This trail leads her to a botanical garden, a bird shop, and a darkroom. The photo lab technician compares the effect of photographs to God turning Lot’s wife into a pillar of salt because she couldn’t resist the temptation of turning around to see Sodom be destroyed. Captured for eternity, transfixed for eternity – should we take it at face value when the protagonist tells the boatwoman that she is a part-time vampire? The dreamlike way in which the film digresses to show us a plant, a strip of negatives, or a table tennis match contributes considerably to the strange fascination it develops. Some things remain mysterious – which only makes us even more curious about what they might be referring to.

international title: The Pillar of Salt
original title: Tuzdan kaide
country: Turkey
sales agent: Pascale Ramonda Paris
year: 2018
genre: fiction
directed by: Burak Çevik
film run: 70'
screenplay: Burak Çevik, Burak Serin
cast: Zinnure Türe, Dila Yumurtacı, Esme Madra, Banu Fotocan, Elit Iscan, Nihal Koldas, Reyhan Özdilek, Ayşe Demirel, Nazan Kesal, Nalan Kuruçim
film editing: Burak Çevik
music: Ozan Tekin
producer: Burak Çevik, Arda Çiltepe, Semih Gülen, Cem Celai Bilge, Selman Nacar
production: Fol Film (TR)

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