Best Turkish documentary movies

Kedi (2017)

A profile of Istanbul and its unique people, seen through the eyes of the most mysterious and beloved animal humans have ever known, the Cat.

Stray (2021)

Experience the bustle of Istanbul street life through the eyes of three stray dogs – Zeytin, Nazar and Kartal.

I'm Glad I Did (2020)

Metin Akpınar has not been on the theater stage since 1992. In addition to TV series and movies, new generations were able to meet him with Devekuşu Kabare's six plays that could be recorded. As if it was written today, those who watched had a taste of his unique acting in current plays. It was an acting that accompanied his talent and his intellectual background. "I'm Glad I Did", when transferring through the years Metin Akpinar he brought his own narrative, on the other hand, offers a different approach to Turkey's recent history, leaving an archive for the future by refreshing memory.

On the Way to School (2008)

One year in the life of a Turkish teacher, teaching the Turkish language to Kurdish children in a remote village in Turkey. The children can't speak Turkish, the teacher can't speak Kurdish and is forced to become an exile in his own country. On the Way to School is a film about a Turkish teacher who is alone in a village as an authority of the state, and about his interaction with the Kurdish children who have to learn Turkish. The film witnesses the communication problem emphasizing the loneliness of a teacher in a different community and culture; and the changes brought up by his presence into this different community during one year. The film chronicles one school year, starting from September 2007 until the departure of the teacher for summer holiday in June 2008. During this period, they begin to know and understand each other mutually and slowly.

Ecumenopolis: City Without Limits (2011)

Ecumenopolis: City Without Limits" tells the story of Istanbul and other Mega-Cities on a neo-liberal course to destruction. It follows the story of a migrant family from the demolition of their neighborhood to their on-going struggle for housing rights. The film takes a look at the city on a macro level and through the eyes of experts, going from the tops of mushrooming skyscrapers to the depths of the railway tunnel under the Bosphorous strait; from the historic neighborhoods in the south to the forests in the north; from isolated islands of poverty to the villas of the rich. It's an Istanbul going from 15 million to 30 million. It's an Istanbul going from 2 million cars to 8 million. It's the Istanbul of the future that will soon engulf the entire region. It's an Istanbul nobody has ever seen before.

Kırmızı Hap Bölüm 1 - "Ateistleri Anlamak" (2015)

My Child (2013)

What happens when your child comes out to you? In this feature documentary, parents of lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans-gender individuals in Turkey intimately share their experiences with the viewer, as they redefine what it means to be parents in this conservative society.

Arda Turan: Confrontation (2024)

Arda Turan shares the most intimate details of his well-known personal life, starting on the streets of Bayrampaşa and leading up to Ali Sami Yen, Vicente Calderon and finally to Camp Nou.

Blue (2017)

A thorough look at the 90's Turkish rock scene, one legendary stage band and its two members: Kerim Capli and Yavuz Cetin... An inquiry of their existential battles with the society, the industry and their own minds.

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Blue ID (2022)

A transgender man struggles with self-realization and acceptance in traditional society of Turkey. Constrained by identification cards color-coded for gender, will he finally be considered for a Blue ID?

Holy Redemption (2024)

The groundbreaking documentary offers an unprecedented look into the atrocities carried out by radical settlers in the occupied West Bank, revealing the impact of these actions on Palestinian communities. Filmed on-site in the occupied West Bank after the Gaza genocide began on October 7, it highlights the alleged support settlers receive from the Israeli state and military. The documentary presents a chilling narrative of terror and land theft perpetrated by radical settlers against Palestinians, providing perspectives from both the perpetrators and the witnesses of these events. By bringing these stories to the global public, "Holy Redemption" seeks to illuminate the ongoing conflict in the region and its implications.

Gulyabani (2018)

Gulyabani is an entity, a ghoul, an outsider. She’s the restless spirit of a desolate and lonely place. Fethiye Sessiz, a notorious clairvoyant from Izmir in 1970s and 1980s, remembers fractions of her survival from abuse, kidnappings and violence. Recounting the events of her childhood through her diary and letters to her estranged son, Gulyabani recollects the emotional landscape in the most violent period of post-Republic Turkey, where the memory of the future and fragments of the past come together at once.

The Colors of the Game: Living with the Storm (2022)

Passionate fans, a city that lives on football; a stormy story of joy, sorrow and enthusiasm from the past to the future… "The Colors of the Game: Living with the Storm" looks at the championship of Trabzonspor, which came after years, through the eyes of the city and its people...

Fatma of the Forest (1979)

Reflects life, longings and a major “fear” in the subconscious of a 12-years old “woodcutter” girl living under very hard conditions in the forest of Toros Mountains at an altitude of approximately 2000 m. The documentary, aiming to symbolize a little-known but common practice of child labour, accomplishes a dramatic portrayal of laborers who work for Ministery of Forestry totally deprived of social security.

25 Litre (2019)

This semi scripted documentary hosted by Gokhan Ozoguz revolves around the issue of water crisis. In a near future, Istanbul will be on the verge of a water crisis, and if the people of 2019 refuse to change their habits, that future is very dark.

Şeytan Üçgeni - I. Barut Kokusu (2024)

Queen Lear (2019)

Shakespeare's 'King Lear' travelling on the dusty and risky roads to the remotest forgotten villages in the mountains of Turkey where even drinking water can hardly reach, turns delicately into 'Queen Lear' in the hands of a peasant-women theatre group. In the early 2000s, a handful of peasant women from the mountains of southern Turkey formed a theater group, which later became the subject of the documentary, The Play. The women acted out their own life stories in the village, and the play changed their lives. Now, they take to the road with an adaptation of Shakespeare's King Lear, traveling the dusty, dangerous roads to the farthest-flung mountain villages where there isn't even running water. On the road, their lives merge with the world of King Lear and become bound up with "the good and the bad", "the young and the old", "the rich and the poor", "the honest and the dishonest" of the play.

North (2015)

Bakur (North) is a documentary that invites its audience to reflect on a war that has been continuing for decades and gives an insightful look on its main subject, the PKK. The film follows the lives of the guerilla in three different camps on the Kurdish region (north) that lies within Turkish borders.

Glassy Stares (2020)

Although they are in their early forties, twin brothers Tayfun and Taykan, who live in a nursing home, are passionately devoted to music. The twins, who call their musical group "Glassy Stares", isolate themselves from life and spend their time writing lyrics and composing. Glassy Stares; an ecstatic insight into the truth in the mists of schizophrenia; knotting the bond with reality with guitar strings; It is a story of brotherhood in which the subjects are mixed with praise and the transformation into music by going beyond making music.

Black, Not Gray: Ankara Rocks! (2017)

The story of the rock and metal music scene in the '80s and '90s in Ankara, the capital of Turkey -- the city which is deemed to be 'gray', considered as 'lifeless', 'soulless' and 'dull', and labeled as a 'city of politics' -- and a band's attempts to get out of it despite their love of their hometown.

The Collector (2002)

This is a documentary about a passionate collector. A man who has been collecting for 70 years, collecting everything one can imagine. A man who lives in his own house like a guest of his collections. A man who tries to freeze time, as if to hold on to present. In this documentary, you will follow this passionate collector through the vivid streets of Istanbul, among the crowd, in search of new collection items while trying to understand his perception of life and collection.

İris (2020)

Biographical trans documentary film in which Iris Mozalar, a young artist, shares her diversity of being a bisexual transgender woman, the process of creating herself and her reflections against society.

Eski Açık Sarı Desene (2003)

Adieu Istanbul (2013)

Before 1950, Istanbul Greeks made up half of Istiklal Street. It all began on the 6th of September 1955, with a nighttime pogrom. Thirty years later, out of 150,000 Istanbul-Greeks, only 2,000 remained. What kind of life was it – for a member of a minority – and how is it today? “The worst thing is to hide your identity,” says one of those who have remained. “Nobody was concerned about us, neither Greece nor Europe!” Many Istanbul-Greeks now live in Greece. But not all are happy there. “Istanbul is not a city, it’s a life!” says one of them. Some Istanbul-Greeks of the Diaspora still want to return to their hometown.

Anatolian Trip (2018)

Eager in spirit for a better world, an amateur rock band from bohemian Istanbul embarks on an impromptu tour to mainland Turkey, in hopes of sharing their music and love with fellow countrymen.

Resistance Is Life (2017)

Eight-year-old Evlin characterizes the resilience of Kobane's resistance against ISIS forces through her experience in a refugee camp on the Turkish-Syrian border.

Demirkırat: Bir Demokrasinin Doğuşu (1991)

A documentary of Turkish political history about multi-party period, Democrat Party government and the coup d'etat of 27th May. Including eye-witness interviews with journalists, officers, politicians and family members.

Sarı Zeybek (1993)

From the famous Turkish journalist, Can Dündar narrates the last 300 days of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. The documentary features the stories and mails from the friends of Atatürk who is the founder of Turkish Republic and also led the Turkish army in the Turkish War of Independence

Yaşar Kemal Efsanesi (2017)