Editor

Eskişehir International Film Festival and filmfestivals.com agreed on a partnership aiming at bringing a closer focus on the film activities in the 10th edition of the festival due to take place next may 2-12, 2008.

Introduction speeches for the 9th edition.
Stay tuned for our live coverage of the festival by Alex Deleon next may 2-12

For the ninth time, the Eskişehir International Film Festival opens its doors to our students, teachers and citizens with a fine selection from the art of film - the best films, the finest directors and greatest stars. Together we will enjoy another festival in an atmosphere of great enthusiasm …

In the framework of this year's festival, the improvement in the culture of cinema and its intellectual dimension are further enriched by the opening of new competitions, with awards for: 'the best cinema book', 'the best cinema article' and ‘the best cinema programme on television'.

My sincere hope is that these will act as incentives for better work and research in these fields.

The identity of Anadolu University is based firmly on science, culture and art together, and for us to bring art to wider audiences is both a responsibility and an honour.

The Eskişehir International Film Festival is one of the most beautiful initiatives that our university shares with our city and the sheer number of spectators is reason enough for us to give it our support.

I offer my congratulations to the festival team, who have ensured that this great contribution to art will continue, and once more I want to express my great pleasure at this event.


Prof. Dr. Fevzi Sürmeli
Rector

Hello to the Eskişehir International Film Festival …
In the name Cinema Days lie the urgency of the first days, the excitement. The name recalls the old days when we were growing like a child - it meant hard work, worry, anxiety, it meant sharing our joys and our creations. The name reminds us of our first lovers, of all the nicest things …Last year the viewing figures we achieved were beyond our wildest expectations. As they increase, so our responsibilities increase. It means that for the first time we have a film salon in the city, and the dream we had in the beginning is becoming a reality. Born at the hearth of Anadolu University, the Cinema Days have created their own audiences, spread into the city and become the Eskişehir Film Festival.
In the festival are award-winning films, full-length films, short films and documentaries, all reflecting the trends of world cinema and the ways in which young filmmakers are different - a little bit more pushy perhaps, but also intriguing, enigmatic - and of course the eternal pleasures of the classics and the masterpieces of Visconti, while for those who are prepared to give up their night's sleep for the sake of high-voltage suspense, there is the midnight session, and for those who know no limits to the imagination, the films of the great mystical master of animated film, Miyazaki, which will convey them to another universe. With that our ten-day marathon starts …

We can't avoid a feeling of sadness when the festival draws to an end each year. The effect of the films we have seen still lingers on, we remember the warm friendships we have made, and before very long we start to think about the next year.

Thanks to Prof. Dr. Fevzi Sürmeli for his continuing support, and thanks to all the university departments which made a contribution, the people who gave our festival a voice and shared in the excitement of its creation …
Let us meet together next year and celebrate the tenth birthday of the Eskişehir Film Festival - meanwhile, good viewing, everyone!

Prof. Dr. Gülseren Güçhan
Festival Coordinator