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Turkish cinema mourns death of director Çakmaklı
Uçakan also highlighted that in order to understand Çakmaklı, one needs to look at the situation of cinema when he began working as a director. “In a twisted effort to resemble the cinema of the West, the Turkish cinema industry grew distant from its own values, its national and religious values. There was even a sense of mocking the religion -- Islam -- and beliefs by creating imam characters with round trimmed beards and whirling eyes who wear black cassocks. Marxism was the popular idea of the time. Under such circumstances, Yücel Ağabey [older brother] shot the movie ‘Birleşen Yollar' [Joining Roads] in 1970, featuring the most important stars of the time. The movie attracted much attention, and it served as the start of the National Cinema movement. It was a cornerstone. The movie was the best reflection of the revolt against the twisted Westernization movement in the Turkish movie industry. Without understanding the [Turkish National Cinema] movement, let alone understanding Turkish cinema history, it is impossible to understand Turkey's political and social history,” he said.
Uçakan further stressed that Çakmaklı never changed his attitude and lifestyle, unlike many intellectuals who change their lives when they achieve fame and material success. “He never lived in luxury. He did not have pretentious mansions, cars and bodyguards. Even on the last days of his life, he told me he had financial difficulty with his retirement salary,” he said.
Noting that there are both supporters and opponents of Çakmaklı's work in Turkey's artistic and intellectual circles, Uçakan highlighted that the public has always stood by Çakmaklı, adding: “The new generation is growing up with a different discourse. A different cinema language is being formed. The ideological polarization and fights through which we struggled are not present now. There are some among these young people who share the ideology of Yücel Ağabey. But if it were not for Yücel Ağabey, I do not think today's youth would work as comfortably as they do now.”
Osman Sınav, one of the most popular directors in Turkey, expressed his grief over the death of Çakmaklı. Describing Çakmaklı's work as “a cinema integrated with its public,” Sınav said Çakmaklı was an important figure in cinema during his era, adding: “He became the leader of numerous things. He highlighted the concept of nationalism in cinema. He worked meticulously on his projects. He always tried to reflect the common sense and culture of Turkish people. He created variety in Turkish cinema.”
Sınav further said the television series directed by Çakmaklı cannot be compared to shows on television today in terms of their quality since Çakmaklı's works were made with more care and have survived until today.
Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Antalya deputy Tunca Toskay, who was general manager of the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT) when Çakmaklı was working there, recalled a television series Çakmaklı directed titled “Kuruluş” (Foundation) and argued that the series was the greatest production ever to emerge from the Turkish entertainment industry. Toskay said, “Having a good grasp of our culture, he produced very successful historical works.”
Çakmaklı was yesterday buried in the Zincirlikuyu Cemetery, following a religious memorial service held at Fatih Mosque in İstanbul.
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