"We did not think it would be suitable for Turkey to screen a movie with police standing guard in front of the movie theater," said Sabahattin Cetin, the owner of Belge Film.
Tugrul Eryilmaz, head of daily Milliyet's art section, "Milliyet Sanat," and the daily Radikal's various sections, actor Halil Ergun, Cengiz Sezgin from the Ankara Art Theater, and movie writers Alin Tasciyan and Sevin Okyay said it would be "impossible to keep in dark a movie that would be screened all over the world."
Eryilmaz: Let's discuss the reasons; instead of the decision
Eryilmaz said it was a shame for Belge Film's owner Sabahattin Cetin to decide not to screen the movie in Turkey. "The people, instead of discussing his decision, should rather discuss what reasons caused him to make that decision and back down from screening it," said Eryilmaz.
"I cannot think of any sensible reason why a movie, which is about us, and which will be screened in all over the world, is banned in Turkey," he added. "What will be our gain when we don't see a movie that everyone else has watched, known and talked about?"
Ergun: Cetin should have accepted the risk of screening the movie
"Cetin should have accepted the risk of screening the movie the same way he accepted the risk of buying its screening rights in Turkey," said Ergun.Ergun said it was significant that the government had offered Cetin to deploy police officers in front of the movie theaters that screened "Ararat" to guarantee security.
"So any issue that is a taboo in Turkey will not be turned into a movie? That is so sad," he said.
"A movie is made, and it is up to the viewers to appreciate it. If this film were not realistic, it would have not been appreciated. If it were realistic, we would have discussed it. Would that have been too bad?"
Tasciyan: I wish the movie were never brought into Turkey
"The movie sector is not a means for propaganda. It is a means of communication. And with that characteristic, it is a part of media," said Tasciyan. "It is also an art. It does not deserve such an attitude." Tasciyan said he was against bringing the movie into Turkey all the way from the beginning:
"I object to Ararat for the same reason I object to movies that do war propaganda or that are made only to prove certain ideologies."
"Everything is wrong from the very beginning. Making a movie with such an attitude, buying this movie, distributing it, objecting to it and then sitting down and evaluating the developments, all this is a vicious cycle. It is meaningless. How can we correct a wrong that has been wrong all the way from the start?" asked Tasciyan.
Okyay: "The owners of the country" would not be punished for what they did
Okyay said he found it stupid to evaluate a film on a political platform. "Egoyan is Armenian, but this is not a movie that a state has paid for. It is a movie by a director who has included in it his own history and family," said Okyay.
Okyay said, after all the threats they received he found Belge Film's decision right: "Since they call themselves "the owners of the country, there is a high chance they would not be even punished for what they did if they brought into life those threats."
Sezgin: It is scary that such threats could be made
"The movie sector is an art, it is a work of art. It is a personal decision to either like or dislike a movie. But it is meaningless to prevent a movie from being screened through threats. And it is scary that such threats could be made," said actor Sezgin.
Sezgin reminded that art had the principles of universality and freedom. "We are criticizing the fact that certain circles who call themselves "nationalists," can prevent a movie from being screened," said Sezgin. (BB/EA/NM)
