Handan İpekçi

Handan İpekçi — Biography

Handan İpekçi, whose family has roots in Trabzon, was born in Ankara in 1956. After graduating from the radio, television and cinema department of Gazi University's School of Press and Broadcasting, she entered the film industry through jobs such as assistant director and film editor.

She made her first attempt at directing with the documentary Kemençenin Türküsü, then completed her debut feature Babam Askerde in 1994, also writing and producing it herself; the film won the awards for most promising new director and screenwriter at the Ankara International Film Festival. Her 2001 film Büyük Adam Küçük Aşk took the best film and best screenplay prizes at the Antalya Golden Orange festival along with honors at the Cairo International Film Festival, and served as Turkey's official submission for Best Foreign Language Film at the 74th Academy Awards. She went on to direct Saklı Yüzler and Çınar Ağacı, again largely writing her own scripts.

Known for stories that weave social issues into personal drama, İpekçi is regarded as one of the leading women directors in Turkish cinema.