Şimdiki Zaman

Present Tense

A young unemployed woman applies to a fortune-telling café, lying that she has experience. While she reads the coffee cups of different women she tries to find a way out for herself. Divorced, disconnected from her family, about to be thrown out of her flat she is surrounded with troubles. Her mind is made up: she will escape to America. But how? She needs money, papers and a visa. Through the shapes emerging in coffee cups she expresses her own frustrations and desires to match those of the customers. Meanwhile, the other young fortuneteller and the rebellious boss at the café try to bring her out of her shell. Will she be able to get away from present tense and try her luck for the future?

Director's Biography
BELMIN SöYLEMEZ, born 1966 in Istanbul, worked as copy writer and editor and made music videos and promotion films as a director and producer. Her short films and documentaries have been screened at international film festivals and have also participated in exhibitions. PRESENT TENSE, her first fiction feature film, had its world premiere at the Istanbul International Film Festival 2012 where it received the Best Actress Award. // Films (selected): UYKU HALI (State of Sleep, 2002, short), DALGALAR (Waves, 2001, short), 34 TAKSI (34 Taxi, 2005, doc), ŞIMDIKI ZAMAN (Present Tense, 2012)
Competition Fiction 2013
Belmin Söylemez
Turkey 2012
color
110 minutes
OV with English subtitles
Screenplay Belmin Söylemez, Haşmet Topaloğlu
Cinematography Peter Roehsler
Editing Ali Aga, Belmin Söylemez
Sound/Sounddesign Seçkin Kaştaş
Music Cenker Kökten
With Sanem Öge, Şenay Aydın, Ozan Bilen, Suat Oktan, Nesrin Yıldırım, Erdi Kement
Production
Filmbüfe Film Production Ltd. PK 244 Beyoğlu 34431 Istanbul Turkey T / F +90 212 2527255 info@filmbufe.com www.filmbufe.com