Filmekimi director Kerem Ayan at the festival’s launch in İstanbul.
Türkiye’s major international film festival, Filmekimi, launched its latest edition in Istanbul on Oct. 9, showcasing new works by celebrated directors such as Pedro Almodóvar, Asghar Farhadi, Werner Herzog, James Gray, and Taika Waititi.
Organized by the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (İKSV), the festival runs in Istanbul from Oct. 9 to 18, before moving to Ankara on Oct. 15-18 and Izmir and Mersin on Oct. 22-25. Mersin will host the festival for the first time.
This year’s program features films premiered at major international festivals, including Cannes and Venice, spanning drama, science fiction, thrillers, comedy and documentary cinema.
Highlights include Almodóvar’s Bitter Christmas, Farhadi’s Parallel Tales and Gray’s Paper Tiger. Herzog’s Bucking Fastard and Taika Waititi’s adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s Klara and the Sun are also among the featured titles. Other notable entries include Na Hong-jin’s Hope and Martin McDonagh’s Wild Horse Nine.
Selected winners of the 2026 Istanbul Film Festival will also screen outside Istanbul, giving audiences in other cities an opportunity to see acclaimed Turkish productions.
In Istanbul, screenings will take place at Atlas 1948, City’s CineWAM Nişantaşı, Kadıköy Cinema and Paribu Art. Ankara screenings will be held at Büyülü Fener Kızılay, while audiences in Izmir and Mersin can attend screenings at Paribu Cineverse venues.
