EAST OF ISTANBUL

The documentary explains the issue of domestic migration, an important problem of Turkey, over the people habiting the province of İmranlı, Sivas. Naci Boztepe is a character that explains the village environment from the days of his headman’s office until today. On the other hand, Şefika Boztepe is an active woman struggling for her village. She wanted to be a headman candidate during the elections but the village’s habitants did not approve this because of her being a “female”. She has erected yards and gardens to make use of empty farms. She has purchased 100 pcs turkeys and she is now feeding them. She cows and chickens. She contributes to the household subsistence by selling fruits and vegetables. In the meanwhile, she tries to show people that villages are still habitable. 

The Naci-Şefika couple has 8 children. 7 live in Istanbul and one in Muğla. The documentary will be shaped around this couple in detail. The story of this family will be explained as they live in a small village that is located between mountains and many kilometers away from the city. An auxiliary character of the documentary will be one of their sons living in Istanbul. We will therefore shed light on a person’s live that has not lived in Sivas but migrated to Istanbul. Explanations will be given as to why they do not want to live in Sivas despite the increasing population and shrinking living areas in Istanbul. 

The documentary focus on the ones left behind. A women aspiring to progress her village and struggling for this purpose. In the meantime, a man who has surrendered thinking that he has given enough struggles for his village until this time. A destitute family fearing to be torn apart from the life they have been used to and forced to think about their children. And a youngster from Sivas seeking the solution in Istanbul despite all the aforesaid.