"Prison or Exile"

Prison or Exile (Gefängnis oder Exil)
Genre: Documentary
Director: Şerif Çiçek
Featuring: Firat Anlı, Nursel Aydoğan, and Zülküf Karatekin
Year: 2021
Languages: Turkish, Kurdish

Firat Anlı, Nursel Aydoğan, and Zülküf Karatekin are all Kurdish politicians who formerly held office in Amed. Anlı was co-mayor with Gültan Kışanak, and Aydoğa was a member of parliament from Amed. All were detained and arrested in 2016 and 2017, on the usual absurd charges of association with terrorism. All were released and live in Europe today. In this documentary, they tell their stories and discuss their choice to flee Turkey.

Şerif Çiçek was born in Amed in 1992. He worked on numerous film projects in Istanbul as assistant to the production designer and assistant to the director. In 2017 and 2018 he worked in North and East Syria as a member of the Rojava Film Commune. He then moved to Germany, where he worked for Art Records Production, directing and producing music videos and TV programs. Prison or Exile is his first documentary. He serves as the European representative of the Rojava Film Commune.

The New York Kurdish Cultural Center is proud to screen this film as part of Kurdish Heritage Month 2023.