Festival Staff
Vedide Kaymak
Festival Director
After graduating in Political Science and Journalism, Vedide worked in a variety of Turkish media organisations before moving to London, and a career in the cinema industry. Vedide initially worked with various arts and cultural organisations promoting Turkish culture in the UK, programming for MTV's Turkish channel and co-producing short films. However, it was her work at the Rio Cinema in East London as Front of House Manager and the subsequent creation of the London Turkish Film Festival that fulfilled her career ambition. 15 years later, through Vedide's leadership, the Festival has grown from a three-day event to an internationally renowned festival, which this year she established as an independent organisation with Yesim Guzelpinar of Balik Arts. For the last ten years, Vedide has also successfully promoted and distributed Turkish films to cinemas throughout the UK.
Yesim Guzelpinar
General Manager
After graduating in English Language and Literature in Turkey, Yesim studied Linguistics in London. After a two-year period in Turkey working in international trade union relations, she returned to the UK to do a masters degree in European Social Policy at the LSE. In 1999 after working at management level in various organisations and businesses, Yesim founded Balik Arts, an organisation working with Turkish speaking children and young people, where she devised, fundraised for and implemented many local and international projects. These now include information/advice/guidance, filmmaking, radio broadcasting, drama, crime prevention, literacy and parenting projects. The short films produced by the young people of Balik Arts have been regularly shown at the London Turkish Film Festival. The collaboration with the LTFF extended to an audience development project, and since 2008, a full partnership. In 2009, she was the co-founder with Vedide Kaymak of the LTFF as an independent organisation.
Peter Howden
Co-Programmer
Peter Howden has been part of the London independent cinema scene for over forty years. He managed and programmed both the Electric, Portobello Road and the Everyman, Hampstead in the years when independent repertory cinemas flourished in the capital. Peter has also ventured into the distribution side of the film business and he is still a regular at the Hong Kong Film Festival. He still enjoys watching, writing about and even showing films and currently does all three at the Rio Dalston, home of the LondonTurkish Film Festival for a mere fifteen years!
Sevinç Baloğlu
Sevinç Baloğlu graduated from Ankara University Department of Communication in 1984. She worked as a reporter for Turkish National Press Agency (UBA) during her university years. After graduating she became a scriptwriter for theTara Advertising Agency and state-run TRT Ankara Television.
Following her marriage to Rıza Baloğlu in 1986, she moved to Northern Cyprus and became a programmer for Bayrak Television. In 1988 she returned to İstanbul as a scriptwriter and assistant director for İstanbul Television. In the 90s she went on to more scriptwriting on Suha Arın's team at MTV. From 1992 she took on various roles for the Turkish Foundation of Cinema and Audiovisual Culture (TÜRSAK Vakfı). She left TÜRSAK in 2009 to found Su Production, named after her daughter.
Sevinç Baloğlu's work includes:
- Kula'da Üç Gün (Three Days in Kula), 1982 – Co-scriptwriter with two other friends (the script has won the first prize in a contest by the Turkish Ministry of Culture; the film won the Golden Orange for Best Documentary in 1983)
- Bekleyiş (Waiting), 1989 – Scriptwriter (broadcast on TRT)
- Mardin'den Bir Ses (A Voice From Mardin), 1990 – Scriptwriter (broadcast on TRT and in The Netherlands, Belgium and France)
- Topkapı Palace Documentary/ 7 episodes (Topkapı Sarayı Belgeseli/ 7 bölüm), 1991 – Scriptwriter (broadcast on TRT)
- Reflections of the Ottoman in the Turkish Cinema (Osmanlı’dan Sinemamıza Yansıyanlar), 1995 – Scriptwriter
- From Topkapı to Versailles (Topkapı'dan Versailles'e), 1996 – Scriptwriter (broadcast on CNN Türk)
- The Treasures of the Ottoman Art (Osmanlı Sanatının Hazineleri), 1997 – Scriptwriter (broadcast on CNN Türk)
- War and Peace (Savaş ve Barış), 1998 – Scriptwriter (broadcast on CNN Türk)
- Troy (Troya), 2006 – Scriptwriter/ Producer (screened at international film festivals)
- World of Designs (Bidünya Tasarım), 2009 –TV programme, Scriptwriter and producer
- 1999-2005 – Coordinator-General for Poland, Hungary, Cuba, and Kiev Turkish Film Week
- 1997-2002 – Scriptwriting Tuition in "TÜRSAK Cinema Seminars"
- 1998-2008 – Coordinator-General for "International Meeting of Cinema and History"
- 1995-2003 – Coordinator-General for "International Environment Films Festival"
- 2001-2008 – Coordinator-General for "International Comedy Days"
- 2002-2009 – Coordinator-General for "International Children's Film Festival"
- 2004-2008 – Coordinator General for "International Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival"
