Çağla Zencirci

Biography

Fascinated by myths and legends, Çağla Zencirci uses the medium of cinema to tell real-life stories.

With her partner Guillaume Giovanetti, Zencirci has co-directed several shorts and three features, Noor (2012), Ningen (2013) and Sibel (2018). Noor, their first feature-length film presented at the ACID section of the Cannes Film Festival, tells the story of a transgender man in Pakistan who tries to live a ‘normal’ life with a woman. The film, based on the lay lead actor’s true biography was featured at numerous festivals and won the award for Best Performance at the Vancouver International Women in Film Festival (2014).

Sibel premiered at the Locarno Film Festival and was awarded the Prize of the Youth Jury, the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury and the FIPRESCI Prize.

Their documentary short Shanty Garden Town (2007), about a Turkish urban planner who seeks inspiration from allotment gardeners in Berlin, won Best Short Documentary at the Festival Barcelona Docupolis.

Zencirci has participated in residencies at Groupe Ouest, Brittany, France (2021); Dora Maar, Luberon, France (2017, 2020); TorinoFilmLab, Turin (2015); Moulin d’Andé, Normandy (2006, 2015); and Villa Kujoyama, Kyoto (2010).

She holds a MA in Economic Studies from Hacettepe University, Ankara (1997).

Born in 1976 in Ankara, Zencirci currently lives and works between Istanbul and Paris.

SAF Participation:
Sharjah Film Platform 4 (2021)