The City and the Messiah
30 min., Turkey, 2024
Director
Aylin Kuryel, Raşel Meseri
Written by
Aylin Kuryel, Raşel Meseri
Producer
Özgür Doğan
Editing
Aylin Kuryel, Fırat Yücel
Cinematography
Ali Cem Doğan, Aylin Kuryel, Raşel Meseri
Sound mix
Özgür Doğan
The City and the Messiah is an essay-film that evolves around Sabbatai Zevi, a Jewish rabbi who declared himself the messiah in the 17th century in Izmir and gained followers from Izmir to Thessaloniki, Jerusalem to Amsterdam. We embark on a journey around the recently restored house where Zevi was born in the Agora district of Izmir and dive into the archive of the street. The collective memory triggered around the house offers clues about what official history excludes and the urban legends in circulation.
The film can be watched via This is Short platform with subscription.
Screenings and awards
- İFSAK Short Film Festival, Istanbul, 2025 Honorable Mention
- 17th Go Short - International Short Film Festival, Nijmegen, 2025
- "LI-MA Presents: New Art on Screen", SHEBANG, Amsterdam, 2024
- 17th Documentarist Istanbul Documentary Days, Turkey Panorama Section, Istanbul, 2024
- Darağaç Film Festival (DAFF), İzmir, 2024
- 31st Adana Golden Boll Film Festival, National Feature Documentary Competition, Adana, 2024
- 5th 2 Yaka Short Film Festival, Izmir/Ankara/Stockholm, 2024
- 36th Munich Turkish Film Days, Documentary Section, 2025
- 57th SİYAD Turkish Film Critics Association Awards, National Short Documentary Award Nominee, 2025
- 8th Women Directors Festival, National Feature Documentary Competition, İzmir, 2025