Gender in Turkish cinema from the perspective of women directors

Women, who are pushed to a subordinate position in the social context, are portrayed in cinema from a male perspective within the boundaries set by this subordinate position. Women's being pushed to the position of the other serves for the reproduction of women from a male perspective. At this point, the presence of women directors in cinema and the subjects they deal with as well as the way they deal with them gain importance. It is aimed to examine the representation of the elements that limit and control women from the perspective of women directors. Accordingly, this study focuses on the presence of women in Turkish cinema and the handling of women's issues from a female perspective. In the context of the study, three samples shot by female directors in Turkish cinema after 2015 were analyzed. These three samples are Ghosts (2020), Tereddüt (2016) and Bilmemek (2019). The directors and their films were determined by purposive sampling method. The samples selected in the context of gender roles emphasize the differences of the feminine perspective against the dichotomies drawn by the masculine perspective. A mixed methodology was applied. At this point, the films are analyzed with descriptive analysis method and mise-en- scene criticism method. These three samples are analyzed in the context of feminist theory and queer theory. In the context of feminist theory, the samples are analyzed through the positioning of women as the other in the public-private context, in the context of body-sexuality-motherhood, and the way they are represented from the perspective of female directors. The films Ghosts (2020) and Tereddüt (2016) were analyzed in the context of feminist theory, while the film Bilmemek (2019) was analyzed in the context of queer theory. Forms of resistance against their positioning as the other from the perspective of women directors are also included in the context of the issues addressed.