Asli Umut Asli Umut Filmmaker + Editor

In May 2012, I took part in a found-footage film workshop held in Goethe Institute Ankara by the German visual artist Volker Schreiner and Turkish video artist Ege Berensel. Female Archenemy is the fruit of this workshop under Volker's mentoring. It was screened at the Goethe Institute during Ankara Film Festival.


The idea behind the film is to emphasise the verbal and physical abuse and violence practiced by women on women. The found footage used in the film are from Yesilcam, the golden era of the Turkish cinema in the 60's. Most iconic stars from this era represent good and pious women. They're often terrorised and ridiculed by their archenemies, almost always other women, be it their mother-in-laws, older women of the village or a femme fatale. These films echo a culture of misogyny moulded within our society with the help of male gaze and conservatism.